^S.-','.-.;:'.'..;n  ■;:":;.'■;;. 


THE  JAMES  K.  MOFFITT    FUND. 

LIBRARY  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


GIFT    OF 

JAMES    KENNEDY   MOFFITT 

OF  THE    CLASS   OF  '86. 


Accession  No.     9904 b       Class  No . 


FAIRY     TALES 

FROM  THE  SWEDISH 


"twigmuntus,  cowbelliantus,  perchnosius?   can  you  give  me  an 
answer  to  that?"  the  lad  asked.     (page  83.) 


FAIRY    TALES 

FROM    THE    SWEDISH 


OF 


:^ 


e 


BARON    G/DJURKLOU 


TRANSLATED    BY 

H.     L.     BR^KSTAD 

WITH    ILLUSTRATIONS    BY 

TH.    KITTELSEN    &    ERIK    WERENSKIOLD 

AND    A     FRONTISPIECE     BY    CARL    LARSSON 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

LONDON 

WILLIAM    HEINEMANN 

MCMI 


T/iis  Edition  enjoys  Copyright 
in  all  Countries  signatory  to  the 
Berne  Treaty,  and  is  not  to  he 
imported  into  the  United  States 
of  America. 


CONTENTS 

I'AGE 

"  LARS,    MY    LAD  !  " I 

^THE   SAUSAGE 27 

^THE   OLD   WOMAN   AND   THE  TRAMP  .    .  33 

^WHAT   SHALL   BABY'S    NAME   BE  ?  .    .    .    .  42 

ST.   PETER   AND   THE  T\VO   WOMEN  ...  53 

THE    OLD   WOMAN   AND    THE    FISH  ...  62 

THE  VALIANT   CHANTICLEER 68 

TWIGMUNTUS,    COWBELLIANTUS, 

PERCHNOSIUS    ....  78 

-THE    LAD  AND   THE    FOX 85 

-OLD   NICK   AND   THE   GIRL 87 

THE   STONE   STATUE 96 

^  THE  ARTFUL   LAD 102 

\  "  ALL   I    POSSESS  !  " 130 

KATIE   GREY 137 

THE   COCK   AND  THE   CRESTED  HEN  .    .  148 

OLD    NICK    AND    THE    PEDLAR 151 

WHY   THE    EXECUTIONER    IS    CALLED 

ASSESSOR  .  161 

^THE   PARSON   AND  THE   CLERK     ....  170 


Vll 


9f;046 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

"  TWIGMUNTUS,    COWBELLIANTUS,    PERCHNOSIUS  ?   CAN   YOU 

GIVE    ME   AN    ANSWER    TO   THAT?"   THE    LAD   ASKED     Frontispiece 

"do    you    SEE    THE    PALACE    OVER    THERE?"    SAID  THE    KING       Page      7 

"I     WONDER     IF    YOU    CAN    READ   THIS?"     SAID     LARS,    HOLDING 

UP   THE    PAPER    BEFORE   THE    DUKE'S    EYES  19 

LARS    ON    THE   TRAMP  25 

THE     HUSBAND      PULLED     AND     TUGGED     AWAY     TILL     HE     HAD 

NEARLY    PULLED    HIS    WIFE'S    HEAD    OFF    HER    BODY         29 

"what's    THIS     GOING    TO     BE?"    ASKED   THE   WOMAN.        "NAIL 

BROTH,"    SAID    THE    TRAMP  37 

ON     HER    WAY    DOWN    TO    THE    CELLAR,    SHE     BEGAN    THINKING 

WHAT    SHE    SHOULD    CALL    HER    FIRST    BABY  47 

"twelve     and     TWENTY,     THIRTEEN     AND    TWENTY,     NINETEEN 
AND     TWENTY,"      SAID      THE     WIDOW    .    ,    .    SHE     HAD     LOST 

COUNT,    BUT   STILL    SHE    KEPT    ON    MEASURING         55 

"  YOU     MIGHT      AS    WELL     GIVE      ME      A      PROMISE,"     SAID      THE 

WOMAN,    AND   CURTSEYED         59 

ALL   AT   ONCE   THE    PAILS    BEGAN   TO    SHAMBLE    UP   THE    HILL  65 

THE   COCK    TRIED     TO     COMFORT     THE      PRINCESS      AS     BEST     HE 

COULD,    AND    SWEPT   THE   TABLE   WITH    HIS    WINGS  75 

ix 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 


OLD    NICK    SET   OFF    AT    A   TERRIBLE    SPEED  ;     IT    WAS    JUST    LIKE 

A   REGULAR    NORTH-WESTER    RUSHING    PAST  91 

OLD    NICK     HAD    NOW    TO    ACKNOWLEDGE    HIMSELF    BEATEN  94 

WHEN  HE  READ    THE    EVENING    PRAYERS,   HE    HEARD    SOMETHING 

LIKE   A    TITTER    OVER    IN    THE   CORNER         99 

"  MY     DEAR,     KIND     HUSBAND  !       DON't    BE    ANGRY     WITH     ME  !  " 

SHOUTED    THE    WOMAN         115 

"  NO,    KEEP    AWAY     FROM     ME  !  "    CRIED     OLD     NICK,    AND     KEPT 

HER    BACK    WITH    HIS    POLE         HI 

JUST     THEN    TWO    WHITE     PIGEONS     CAME    FLYING    OUT     OF    THE 

COTTAGE.    .    .    .    THEY    WERE    THE    MAN    AND    HIS    WIFE        145 

"  CLUCK  !      CLUCK  !  "    SHE    CRIED,     AND    WANTED    TO    GET    AWAY  149 

BUSINESS     WAS      SO      BRISK,     THAT       IT      WAS      AS      MUCH     AS    HE 
COULD      DO     TO     GET     OUT     HIS     STUFF      AND      MEASURE 

WHAT    THEY    WANTED        153 

THE    PEDLAR    OPENED    THE    BAG,    AND    WHO    SHOULD    PEEP    OUT 

BUT    KATIE    GREY  !       157 

"  FOR,  AFTER    ALL,  IT'S    HARD   TO    DIE    ON   AN    EMPTY   STOMACH," 

SAID    THE    EXECUTIONER       165 


TRANSLATOR'S    NOTE 

The  interesting  and  characteristic  collection  of 
Swedish  Folk  and  Fairy  Tales  published  by  Baron 
Djurklou  nearly  twenty  years  ago,  has,  strange  to 
say,  escaped  the  attention  of  folk-lorists  outside  the 
country  of  their  origin.  They  are  written  in  the 
dialect  of  the  Swedish  peasantry,  to  the  study  of 
which  the  author  has  devoted  so  much  time  and 
labour,  and  they  may  therefore  have  presented  diffi- 
culties in  the  way  of  translation  into  other  languages. 
In  the  present  English  version  of  a  selection  from 
the  tales  the  translator  has  tried  to  retain  as  far  as 
possible  the  humorous  and  colloquial  style  of  the 
original.  The  illustrations  in  the  body  of  the  book 
are  by  T.  Kittelsen  and  E.  Werenskiold,  two  well- 
known  Norwegian  artists,  and  the  frontispiece  is  by 
Carl  Larsson,  the  prince  of  Swedish  illustrators. 

H.  L.  B. 


XI 


"  LARS,  MY  LAD  !  " 

There  was  once  a  prince  or  a  duke,  or  something 
of  that  sort,  but  at  any  rate  he  belonged  to  a  very- 
grand  family,  and  he  would  not  stop  at  home.  So  he 
travelled  all  over  the  world,  and  wherever  he  went 
he  was  well  liked,  and  was  received  in  the  best  and 
gayest  families,  for  he  had  no  end  of  money.  He 
made  friends  and  acquaintances,  as  you  may  imagine, 
wherever  he  went,  for  he  who  has  a  well-filled 
trough  is  sure  to  fall  in  with  pigs  who  want  to  have 
their  fill.  But  he  went  on  spending  his  money  until 
he  came  to  want,  and  at  last  his  purse  became  so 
empty  that  he  had  not  even  a  farthing  left.  And 
now  there  was  an  end  to  all  his  friends  as  well,  for 
they  behaved  like  the  pigs  ;  when  the  trough  was 
empty  and  he  had  no  more  to  give  them,  they  began 
to  grunt  and  grin,  and  then  they  ran  away  in  all 
directions.  There  he  stood  alone  with  a  long  face. 
Everybody  had  been  so  willing  to  help  him  to  get 
rid  of  his  money,  but  nobody  would  help  him  in 
return  ;  and  so  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  trudge 
home  and  beg  for  crusts  on  the  way. 

B 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

So  late  one  evening  he  came  to  a  great  forest.  He 
did  not  know  where  he  should  find  a  shelter  for 
the  night,  but  he  went  on  looking  and  searching  till 
he  caught  sight  of  an  old  tumble-down  hut,  which 
stood  in  the  middle  of  some  bushes.  It  was  not 
exactly  good  enough  for  such  a  fine  cavalier,  but 
when  you  cannot  get  what  you  want  you  must 
take  what  you  can  get.  And,  since  there  was  no 
help  for  it,  he  went  into  the  hut.  Not  a  living 
soul  was  to  be  seen  ;  there  was  not  even  a  stool 
to  sit  upon,  but  alongside  the  wall  stood  a  big 
chest.  What  could  there  be  inside  that  chest  ?  If 
only  there  were  some  bits  of  mouldy  bread  in  it  ! 
How  nice  they  would  taste  !  For,  you  must  know, 
he  had  not  had  a  single  bit  of  food  the  whole  day, 
and  he  was  so  hungry  and  his  stomach  so  empty  that 
it  groaned  with  pain.  He  lifted  the  lid.  But  inside 
the  chest  there  was  another  chest,  and  inside  that 
chest  there  was  another  ;  and  so  it  went  on,  each  one 
smaller  than  the  other,  until  they  became  quite  tiny 
boxes.  The  more  there  were  the  harder  he  worked 
away,  for  there  must  be  something  very  fine  inside, 
he   thought,  since   it   was    so   well   hidden. 

At  last  he  came  to  a  tiny,  little  box,  and  in  this 
box  lay  a  bit  of  paper — and  that  was  all  he  got  for  his 
trouble  !  It  was  very  annoying,  of  course,  but  then  he 
discovered  there  was  something  written  on  the  paper, 
and  when  he  looked  at  it  he  was  just  able  to  spell  it 
out,  although  at  first  it  looked  somewhat  difficult. 

2 


-  Lx-\RS,  MY    LAD  !  " 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

As  he  pronounced  these  words  something  answered 
right  in  his  ear  : 

"  What  are  master's   orders  ?  " 

He  looked  round,  but  he  saw  nobody.  This  was 
very  funny,  he  thought,  and  so  he  read  out  the 
words  once  more  : 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

And  the  answer  came  as  before  : 

*'  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

But  he  did  not  see  anybody  this  time  either. 

"  If  there  is  anybody  about  who  hears  what  I  say, 
then  be  kind  enough  to  bring  me  something  to  eat," 
he  said.  And  the  next  moment  there  stood  a  table  laid 
out  with  all  the  best  things  one  could  think  of.  He 
set  to  work  to  eat  and  drink,  and  had  a  proper  fill. 
He  had  never  enjoyed  himself  so  much  in  all  his  life, 
he  thought. 

When  he  had  eaten  all  he  could  get  down,  he  began 
to  teel  sleepy,  and  so  he  took  out  the  paper  again  : 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

"  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

"  Well,  you  have  given  mie  food  and  drink,  and 
now  you  must  get  me  a  bed  to  sleep  in  as  well.  But 
I  want  a  really  fine  bed,"  he  said,  for  you  must  know 
he  was  a  little  more  bold  now  that  his  hunger  was 
stayed.  Well,  there  it  stood,  a  bed  so  fine  and  dainty 
that  even  the  king  himself  might  covet  it.  Now 
this  was  all  verv  well  in  its  way  ;  but  when  once  you 

3  B    2 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

are  well  off  you  wish  for  still  more,  and  he  had  no 
sooner  got  into  bed  than  he  began  to  think  that  the 
room  was  altogether  too  wretched  tor  such  a  grand 
bed.      So  he  took  out  the  paper  again  : 

'*  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

"  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

*'  Since  you  are  able  to  get  me  such  food  and  such 
a  bed  here  in  the  midst  of  the  wild  forest,  I  suppose 
you  can  manage  to  get  me  a  better  room,  for  you  see 
I  am  accustomed  to  sleep  in  a  palace,  with  golden 
mirrors  and  draped  walls  and  ornaments  and  comforts 
of  all  kinds,"  he  said.  Well,  he  had  no  sooner 
spoken  the  words  than  he  found  himself  lying  in  the 
grandest  chamber  anybody  had  ever  seen. 

Now  he  was  comfortable,  he  thought,  and  felt 
quite  satisfied  as  he  turned  his  face  to  the  wall  and 
closed  his  eyes. 

But  that  was  not  all  the  grandeur;  for  when  he 
woke  up  in  the  morning  and  looked  round,  he  saw  it 
was  a  big  palace  he  had  been  sleeping  in.  One  room 
led  into  the  other,  and  wherever  he  went  the  place 
was  full  of  all  sorts  of  finery  and  luxuries,  both  on 
the  walls  and  on  the  ceilings,  and  they  glittered  so 
much  when  the  sun  shone  on  them,  that  he  had  to 
shade  his  eyes  with  his  hand,  so  strong  was  the  glare 
of  o-old  and  silver  wherever  he  turned.  He  then 
happened  to  look  out  of  the  window.  Good  gracious! 
How  grand  it  was  !  There  was  something  else  than 
pine  forests  and  juniper  bushes  to  look  at,  for  there 

4 


"  LARS,  MY    LAD  !  " 

was  the  finest  garden  any  one  could  wish  for, 
with  splendid  trees  and  roses  of  all  kinds.  But  he 
could  not  see  a  single  human  being,  or  even  a  cat  ; 
and  that,  you  know,  was  rather  lonely,  for  otherwise 
he  had  everything  so  grand  and  had  been  set  up  as 
his   own   master  again. 

So  he  took  out  the  bit  of  paper  : 

"  Lars,  my  lad  ! 

"  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

"  Well  now  you  have  given  me  food  and  bed  and 
a  palace  to  live  in,  and  I  intend  to  remain  here,  for  I 
like  the  place,"  he  said,  "  yet  I  don't  like  to  live 
quite  by  myself.  I  must  have  both  lads  and  lasses 
whom  I  may  order  about  to  wait  upon  me,"  he  said. 

And  there  they  were.  There  came  servants  and 
stewards  and  scullery  maids  and  chambermaids  of  all 
sorts,  and  some  came  bowing  and  some  curtseying. 
So  now  the  duke  thought  he  was  really  satisfied. 

But  now  it  happened  that  there  was  a  large  palace 
on  the  other  side  of  the  forest,  and  there  the  king 
lived  who  owned  the  forest,  and  the  great,  big 
fields  around  it.  As  he  was  walking  up  and  down 
in  his  room  he  happened  to  look  out  through  the 
window  and  saw  the  new  palace,  where  the  golden 
weathercocks  were  swinging  to  and  fro  on  the  roof 
in  the  sunlight,  which  dazzled  his  eyes. 

"  This  is  very  strange,"  he  thought  ;  and  so  he 
called  his  courtiers.  They  came  rushing  in,  and 
began   bowing  and   scraping. 

5 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

'*  Do  you  see   the   palace   over   there  ?  "    said   the 


kino- 


fe- 


They  opened  their  eyes  and  began  to  stare. 

Yes,  of  course  they  saw  it. 

'*  Who  is  it  that  has  dared  to  build  such  a  palace 
in  my  grounds  .?  "   said  the  king. 

They  bowed,  and  they  scraped  with  their  feet,  but 
they  did  not  know  anything  about  it. 

The  king  then  called  his  generals  and  captains. 

They  came,  stood  to  attention  and  presented  arms. 

'*  Be  gone,  soldiers  and  troopers,"  said  the  king, 
*'  and  pull  down  the  palace  over  there,  and  hang  him 
who  has  built  it  ;  and  don't  lose  any  time  about  it  !  " 

Well,  they  set  off  in  great  haste  to  arm  themselves, 
and  away  they  went.  The  drummers  beat  the  skins 
of  their  drums,  and  the  trumpeters  blew  their 
trumpets,  and  the  other  musicians  played  and  blew 
as  best  they  could,  so  that  the  duke  heard  them 
long  before  he  could  see  them.  But  he  had  heard 
that  kind  of  noise  before,  and  knew  what  it  meant, 
so  he  took  out  his  scrap  of  paper: 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

"  What  are  master's  orders  .?  " 

"  There  are  soldiers  coming  here,"  he  said,  "  and 
now  you  must  provide  me  with  soldiers  and  horses, 
that  I  may  have  double  as  many  as  those  over  in  the 
wood,  and  with  sabres  and  pistols,  and  guns  and 
cannons  with  all  that  belongs  to  them  ;  but  be  quick 
about  it." 

6 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


"  LARS,  MY    LAD  !  " 

And  no  time  was  lost  ;  for  when  the  duke  looked 
out,  he  saw  an  immense  number  of  soldiers,  who 
were  drawn  up  around  the  palace. 

When  the  king's  men  arrived,  they  came  to  a 
sudden  halt  and  dared  not  advance.  But  the  duke 
was  not  afraid  ;  he  went  straight  up  to  the  colonel 
of  the  king's  soldiers  and  asked  him  what  he 
wanted. 

The  colonel  told  him  his  errand. 

'*  It's  of  no  use,"  said  the  duke.  "  You  see  how 
many  men  I  have  ;  and  if  the  king  will  listen  to  me, 
we  shall  become  good  friends,  and  I  will  help  him 
against  his  enemies,  and  in  such  a  way  that  it  will 
be  heard  of  far   and  wide, "  he  said. 

The  colonel  was  of  the  same  opinion,  and  the 
duke  then  invited  him  and  all  his  soldiers  inside  the 
palace,  and  the  men  had  more  than  one  glass  to  drink 
and  plenty  of  everything  to  eat  as  well. 

But  while  they  were  eating  and  drinking  they 
began  talking  ;  and  the  duke  then  got  to  hear  that  the 
king  had  a  daughter  who  was  his  only  child,  and  was 
so  wonderfully  fair  and  beautiful  that  no  one  had 
ever  seen  her  like  before.  And  the  more  the  king's 
soldiers  ate  and  drank  the  more  they  thought  she 
would    suit   the   duke   for    a   wite. 

And  they  went  on  talking  so  long  that  the  duke 
at  last  began  to  be  of  the  same  opinion.  "  The  worst 
of  it,"  said  the  soldiers,  "is  that  she  is  just  as  proud 
as   she   is    beautiful,  and  will  never  look  at  a  man." 

9 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

But  the  duke  laughed  at  this.  "  If  that's  all,"  said 
the  duke,  "  there's  sure  to  be  a  remedy  for  that 
complaint." 

When  the  soldiers  had  eaten  and  drunk  as  much  as 
they  could  find  room  for,  they  shouted  "  Hurrah  !  " 
so  that  it  echoed  among  the  hills,  and  then  they  set 
out  homewards.  But,  as  you  may  imagine,  they  did 
not  walk  exactly  in  parade  order,  for  they  were 
rather  unsteady  about  the  knees,  and  many  of  them 
did  not  carry  their  guns  in  regulation  manner.  The 
duke  asked  them  to  greet  the  king  from  him.  He 
would  call  on  him  the  following  day,  he  said. 

When  the  duke  was  alone  again,  he  began  to 
think  of  the  princess,  and  to  wonder  if  she  were  as 
beautiful  and  fair  as  they  had  made  her  out  to  be. 
He  would  like  to  make  sure  of  it ;  and  as  so  many 
strange  things  had  happened  that  day  that  it  might 
not  be  impossible  to  find  that  out  as  well,  he  thought. 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

"  What  are  m.aster's  orders  ?  " 

"  Well,  now  you  must  bring  me  the  king's 
daughter  as  soon  as  she  has  gone  to  sleep,"  he  said  ; 
"  but  she  must  not  be  awakened  either  on  the  way 
here  or  back.  Do  you  hear  that  ?  "  he  said.  And 
before  long  the  princess  was  lying  on  the  bed.  She 
slept  so  soundly  and  looked  so  wonderfully  beautiful, 
as  she  lay  there.  Yes,  she  was  as  sweet  as  sugar,  I 
can  tell  you. 

The   duke  walked   round  about  her,   but  she  was 

lO 


"  LARS,  MY    LAD  !  " 

just    as    beautiful    from   whatever    point  of  view   he 
looked   at   her. 

The  more  he  looked  the  more  he  liked  her. 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  " 

*'  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

"  You  must  now  carry  the  princess  home,"  he  said, 
**for  now  I  know  how  she  looks,  and  to-morrow  I 
will  ask  for  her  hand,"  he  said. 

Next  morning  the  king  looked  out  of  the  window. 
"  I  suppose  I  shall  not  be  troubled  with  the  sight  of 
that  palace  any  more,"  he  thought.  But,  zounds  ! 
There  it  stood  just  as  on  the  day  before,  and  the  sun 
shone  so  brightly  on  the  roof,  and  the  weathercocks 
dazzled  his  eves. 

He  now  became   furious,  and    called   all   his  men. 

They  came  quicker  than  usual. 

The  courtiers  bowed  and  scraped,  and  the  soldiers 
stood  to  attention  and  presented  arms. 

"  Do  you  see  the  palace  there  .?  "  screamed  the 
king. 

They  stretched  their  necks,  and  stared  and  gaped. 

Yes,  of  course,  that  they  did. 

"  Have  I  not  ordered  vou  to  pull  down  the  palace 
and  hang  the  builder  ?  "   he  said. 

Yes,  they  could  not  deny  that  ;  but  then  the 
colonel  himself  stepped  forward  and  reported  what 
had  happened  and  how  many  soldiers  the  duke  had, 
and  how  wonderfully  grand  the  palace  was. 

And  next   he   told  him  what   the   duke  had   said, 

II 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

and  how  he  had  asked  him  to  give  his  greetings  to 
the  king,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing. 

The  king  felt  quite  confused,  and  had  to  put  his 
crown  on  the  table  and  scratch  his  head.  He 
could  not  understand  all  this,  although  he  was  a 
king  ;  for  he  could  take  his  oath  it  had  all  been  built 
in  a  single  night  ;  and  if  the  duke  were  not  the  evil 
one  himself,  he  must  in  any  case  have  done  it  by 
magic. 

While  he  sat  there  pondering,  the  princess  came 
into  the  room. 

"  Good  morning  to  you,  father  !  "  she  said.  *' Just 
fancy,  I  had  such  a  strange  and  beautiful  dream  last 
night !  "  she  said. 

"  What  did  you  dream  then,  my  girl  ?  "  said  the 
king. 

*'  I  dreamt  I  was  in  the  new  palace  over  yonder, 
and  that  I  saw  a  duke  there,  so  line  and  handsome 
that  I  could  never  have  imagined  the  like  ;  and  now 
I  want  to  get  married,  father,"  she  said. 

"  Do  you  want  to  get  married  ?  you,  who  never 
cared  to  look  at  a  man  !  That's  very  strange  !  "  said 
the  king. 

"  That  may  be,"  said  the  princess  ;  "  but  it's 
different  now,  and  I  want  to  get  married,  and  it's  the 
duke  I  want,"  she  said. 

The  king  was  quite  beside  himself,  so  frightened 
did  he  become  of  the  duke. 

But   all    of  a    sudden  he  heard   a  terrible  noise   of 

12 


''LARS,  MY    LAD  !" 

drums  and  trumpets  and  instruments  of  all  kinds;  and 
then  came  a  message  that  the  duke  had  just  arrived 
with  a  large  company,  all  of  whom  were  so  grandly 
dressed  that  gold  and  silver  glistened  in  every  told. 
The  king  put  on  his  crown  and  his  coronation  robes, 
and  then  went  out  on  the  steps  to  receive  them. 
And  the  princess  was  not  slow  to  follow  him. 

The  duke  bowed  most  graciously,  and  the  king  of 
course  did  likewise,  and  when  they  had  talked  a 
while  about  their  affairs  and  their  grandeur  they 
became  the  best  of  friends.  A  great  banquet  was 
then  prepared,  and  the  duke  was  placed  next  to  the 
princess  at  the  table.  What  they  talked  about  is  not 
easy  to  tell,  but  the  duke  spoke  so  well  for  himself 
that  the  princess  could  not  very  well  say  "no"  to  any- 
thing he  said,  and  then  he  went  up  to  the  king  and 
asked  for  her  hand.  The  king  could  not  exactly  say 
"no"  either,  for  he  could  very  well  see  that  the  duke 
was  a  person  with  whom  it  were  best  to  be  on 
friendly  terms  ;  but  give  his  sanction  there  and  then, 
he  could  not  very  well  do  that  either.  He  wanted 
to  see  the  duke's  palace  first,  and  find  out  about  the 
state  of  affairs  over  there,  as  you  may  understand. 

So  it  was  arranged  that  he  should  visit  the  duke 
and  take  the  princess  with  him  to  see  his  palace  ;  and 
with  this  they  parted  company. 

When  the  duke  returned  home,  Lars  became 
busier  than  ever,  for  there  was  so  much  to  attend  to. 
But  he  set  to  work  and  strove  hard  ;   and  when  the 

13 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

king  and  his  daughter  arrived  everything  w^as  so 
magnificent  and  splendid  that  no  v^ords  can  describe 
it.  They  v^^ent  through  all  the  rooms  and  looked 
about,  and  they  found  everything  as  it  should  be,  and 
even  still  more  splendid,  thought  the  king,  and  so  he 
was  quite  pleased. 

The  wedding  then  took  place,  and  that  in  grand 
style  ;  and  on  the  duke's  arrival  home  with  his  bride 
he  too  gave  a  great  feast,  and  then  there  was  an  end 
to  the  festivities. 

Some  time  passed  by,  and  one  evening  the  duke 
heard  these  words  : 

"  Are  you  satisfied  now  ^  " 

It  was  Lars,  as  you  may  guess,  but  the  duke  could 
not  see  him. 

"  Well,  I  ought  to  be,"  said  the  duke.  "  You 
have  provided  me  with  everything  I  have,"  he 
said. 

"  Yes,  but  what  have  I  got  in  return  ^ "  asked 
Lars. 

"  Nothing,"  said  the  duke  ;  "  but,  bless  me,  what 
could  I  have  given  you,  who  are  not  of  fiesh  and 
blood,  and  whom  I  cannot  see  either  ?  "  he  said. 
"  But  if  there  is  anything  I  can  do  for  you,  tell  me 
what  it  is,  and  I  shall  do  it." 

'*  Well,  I  should  like  to  ask  you  for  that  little 
scrap  of  paper  which  you  found  in  the  chest,"  said 
Lars. 

"  Nothing  else  .?  "  said  the  duke.     "  If  such  a  trifle 

14 


"LARS,  i\IY    LAD!" 

can  help  you,  I  can  easily  do  without  it,  for 
now  I  begin  to  know  the  words  by  heart,"  he 
said, 

Lars  thanked  the  duke,  and  asked  him  to  put  the 
paper  on  the  chair  in  front  of  the  bed,  when  he 
retired  to  rest,  and  he  would  be  sure  to  fetch  it 
during    the   night. 

The  duke  did  as  he  was  told  ;  and  so  he  and  the 
princess  lay  down  and  went  to  sleep. 

But  early  in  the  morning  the  duke  awoke  and 
felt  so  cold  that  his  teeth  chattered,  and  when  he 
had  got  his  eyes  quite  open  he  found  he  was  quite 
naked  and  had  not  even  as  much  as  a  thread  on  his 
back  ;  and  instead  of  the  grand  bed  and  the  beautiful 
bedroom,  and  the  magnificent  palace,  he  lay  on  the 
big  chest  in  the  old  tumble-down  hut. 

He  began  to  shout  : 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  "  But  he  got  no  answer.  He 
shouted  once  more  : 

"  Lars,  my  lad  !  "  But  he  got  no  answer  this  time 
either.     So  he  shouted  all  he  could  : 

*'  Lars,  my  lad  !  "   But  it  was  all  in  vain. 

Now  he  began  to  understand  how  matters  stood. 
When  Lars  had  got  the  scrap  of  paper  he  was  freed 
from  service  at  the  same  time,  and  now  he  had 
taken  everything  with  him.  But  there  was  no  help 
for  it.  There  stood  the  duke  in  the  old  hut  quite 
naked;  and  as  for  the  princess  she  was  not  much 
better  otf,  although  she  had  her  clothes   on,  for  she 

15 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

had  got  them  from  her  father,  so  Lars  had  no  power 
over  them. 

The  duke  had  now  to  tell  the  princess  everything, 
and  ask  her  to  leave  him.  He  would  have  to 
manage  as  best  he  could,  he  said.  But  she  would 
not  hear  of  it.  She  well  remembered  what  the 
parson  had  said  v^'hen  he  married  them,  and  she 
would    never,   never   leave  him,  she   said. 

In  the  meantime  the  king  in  his  palace  had  also 
awakened,  and  when  he  looked  out  of  the  window 
he  did  not  see  any  sign  whatever  of  the  other 
palace,  where  his  daughter  and  son-in-law  lived. 
He  became  uneasy,  as  you  may  imagine,  and  called 
his   courtiers. 

They  came  in,  and  began  to  bow  and  scrape. 

*'  Do  you  see  the  palace  over  yonder  behind  the 
forest  ^  "  he  asked. 

They  stretched  their  necks  and  stared  with  all 
their  might. 

No,  they  did  not  see  it. 

"  Where  has  it  gone  to,  then  .?  "  asked  the  king. 

Well,  really  they  did  not  know. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  king  had  set  out  with 
all  his  court  through  the  forest ;  and  when  he  arrived 
at  the  place  where  the  palace  with  the  beautiful 
gardens  should  have  been,  he  could  not  see  any- 
thing but  heather  and  juniper  bushes  and  firs. 
But  then  he  discovered  the  old  tumble-down  hut, 
which  stood   there  among  the  bushes.      He   entered 

i6 


"  LARS,  MY   LAD  !  " 

the  hut  and — mercy  on  us  ! — what  a  sight  met  his 
eyes  !  There  stood  his  son-in-law,  quite  naked,  and 
his  daughter,  who  had  not  very  many  clothes  on 
either,   and    who   was   crying   and   moaning. 

"  Dear,  dear  !  what  does  all  this  mean  ?  "  said 
the  king  ;  but  he  did  not  get  any  answer,  for 
the  duke   would  rather  have  died   than   tell   him. 

The  king  did  his  utmost  to  get  him  to  speak  ;  but 
in  spite  of  all  the  king's  promises  and  threats  the 
duke  remained  obstinate  and  would  not  utter  a 
word. 

The  king  then  became  angry — and  no  wonder, 
for  now  he  could  see  that  this  grand  duke  was  not 
what  he  pretended  to  be,  and  so  he  ordered  the  duke 
to  be  hanged,  and  that  without  any  loss  of  time. 
The  princess  begged  and  prayed  for  mercy  ;  but 
neither  prayers  nor  tears  were  of  any  help  now  ;  for 
an  impostor  he  was,  and  as  an  impostor  he  should 
die,  said  the  king. 

And  so  it  had  to  be.  They  erected  a  gallows,  and 
placed  the  rope  round  the  duke's  neck.  But  while 
they  were  getting  the  gallows  ready,  the  princess 
got  hold  of  the  hangman,  and  gave  both  him 
and  his  assistant  some  money,  that  they  should  so 
manage  the  hanging  of  the  duke  that  he  should  not 
lose  his  life,  and  in  the  night  they  were  to  cut  him 
down,  so  that  he  and  the  princess  might  then  flee  the 
country.     And  that's  how  the  matter  was  arranged. 

In  the  meantime  they  had  strung  up  the  duke,  and 

17  c 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

the  king  and  his  court  and  all  the  people  went 
their  way. 

The  duke  was  now  in  great  straits.  He  had, 
however,  plenty  of  time  to  reflect  how  foolish  he 
had  been  in  not  saving  some  of  the  crumbs  when 
he  was  living  in  plenty,  and  how  unpardonably 
stupid  he  had  been  in  letting  Lars  have  the  scrap  of 
paper.  This  vexed  him  more  than  all.  If  only  he 
had  it  again,  he  thought,  they  should  see  he  had 
been  gaining  some  sense  in  return  for  all  he  had  lost. 
But  it  is  of  little  use  snarling  if  you  haven't  got 
any  teeth.  "  Ah,  well,  well  !  "  he  sighed,  and  so  he 
dangled  his  legs,  which  was  really  all  he  could  do. 

The  day  passed  slowly  and  tediously  for  him,  and 
he  was  not  at  all  displeased  when  he  saw  the  sun 
setting  behind  the  forest.  But  just  before  it 
disappeared  he  heard  a  fearful  shouting,  and  when 
he  looked  down  the  hill,  he  saw  seven  cart-loads 
of  worn-out  shoes,  and  on  the  top  of  the  hindmost 
cart  he  saw  a  little  old  man  in  grey  clothes  and 
with  a  red  pointed  cap  on  his  head.  His  face  was 
like  that  of  the  worst  scarecrow,  and  the  rest  of  him 
was  not  very  handsome  either. 

He  drove  straight  up  to  the  gallows,  and  when  he 
arrived  right  under  it  he  stopped  and  looked  up 
at  the  duke,  and  then  burst  out  laughing,  the  ugly 
old  fellow  ! 

"  How  stupid  you  were  !  "  he  said  ;  "  but  what 
should   the  fool   do  with  his  stupidity  if  he  did  not 

i8 


I    WONDER    IF   YOU   CAN    READ   THIS?"   SAID   LARS,    HOLDING    UI*   THE 
PAPER    BEFORE   THE   DL'KE's   EYES. 


"LARS,  MY    LAD  I" 

make  use  of  it  ? "  And  then  he  laughed  again. 
"  Yes,  there  you  are  hanging  now,  and  here  am  I 
carting  away  all  the  shoes  I  have  worn  out  for  your 
w^hims.  I  wonder  if  you  can  read  what  is  written 
on  this  bit  of  paper,  and  if  you  recognise  it  ?  "  he  said 
with  an  uglv  laugh,  holding  up  the  paper  before 
the  duke's  eyes. 

But  all  who  hang  are  not  dead,  and  this  time  it 
was   Lars  who  was  befooled. 

The  duke  made  a  clutch,  and  snatched  the  paper 
from  him. 

"  Lars,  mv  lad  !  " 

'*  What  are  master's  orders  ?  " 

"  Well,  vou  must  cut  me  down  from  the  gallows 
and  put  the  palace  and  all  the  rest  in  its  place 
again,  exactly  as  it  was  before,  and  when  the  night 
has  set  in  you  must  bring  back  the  princess." 

All  went  merrily  as  in  a  dance,  and  before  long 
everything  was  in  its  place,  just  as  it  was  when 
Lars   took  himself  off. 

When  the  king  awoke  the  next  morning  he 
looked  out  of  the  window,  as  was  his  custom,  and 
there  stood  the  palace  again,  with  the  weathercocks 
glittering  so  beautifully  in  the  sunshine.  He  called 
his  courtiers,  and  they  came  and  began  to  bow  and 
scrape. 

They  stretched  their  necks  as  far  as  they  could, 
and  stared  and  gaped. 

"  Do  you  see  the  palace  over  there  ?  "  said  the  king. 

21 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

Yes,  of  course  they  did. 

The  king  then  sent  for  the  princess,  but  she  was 
not  to  be  found.  He  then  went  out  to  see  if  his 
son-in-law  was  still  hanging  on  the  gallows,  but 
neither  son-in-law  nor  gallows  was  to  be  seen. 

He  had  to  lift  off  his  crown  and  scratch  his  head. 
But  that  did  not  improve  matters  ;  he  could  not 
make  head  or  tail  of  either  one  thing  or  the  other.  He 
set  off  at  once  with  all  his  court  through  the  forest, 
and  when  he  came  to  the  place  where  the  palace 
should  stand,  there  it  stood  sure  enough.  The  gardens 
and  the  roses  were  exactly  as  they  used  to  be,  and  the 
duke's  people  were  to  be  seen  everywhere  among 
the  trees.  His  son-in-law  and  his  daughter  received 
him  on  the  steps,  dressed  in  their  finest  clothes. 

"  Well,  I  never  saw  the  like  of  this,"  said  the  king 
to  himself;  he  could  scarcely  believe  his  own  eyes, 
so  wonderful  did  it  all  seem  to  him. 

"  God's  peace  be  with  you,  father,  and  welcome 
here  !  "  said  the  duke. 

The  king  stood  staring  at  him. 

"Are  you  my  son-in-law  ^  "  he  asked. 

"  Well,  I  suppose  I  am,"  said  the  duke.  "  Who 
else  should  I  be  ?  " 

"  Did  I  not  order  you  to  be  hanged  yesterday  like 
any  common  thief .?  "  said  the  king. 

"  I  think  you  must  have  been  bewitched  on  the 
way,"  said  the  duke,  with  a  laugh.  *'  Do  you  think 
I  am  the  man  to  let  mvself  be  hanged  ?      Or  is  there 

22 


"  LARS,  MY    LAD  !  " 

any  one  here  who  dares  to  beheve  it  r  "  he  said,  and 
looked  so  fiercely  at  the  courtiers  that  they  felt  as  if 
they  were  being  pierced  through  and  through. 

They  bowed  and  scraped  and  cringed  before  him. 

"  Who  could  believe  such  a  thing  ?  Was  it  at  all 
likely  ?  " 

"  Well,    if  there  is   any  one  who  dares   to  say  the 
king  could  have  wished  me  such  evil,  let  him  speak* 
out,"  said  the  duke,   and   tixed  his   eyes  upon  them 
still   more   fiercely   than   before. 

They  went  on  bowing  and  scraping  and  cringing. 

How  could  any  one  dare  to  say  such  a  thing  .' 
No,  they  had  more  sense  than  that,  they  should 
hope. 

The  king  did  not  know  what  to  believe,  for  when 
he  looked  at  the  duke  he  thought  he  never  could 
have  wished  him  such  evil  ;  but  still  he  was  not 
quite  convinced. 

"  Did  I  not  come  here  yesterday,  and  was  not  the 
whole  palace  gone,  and  w^as  there  not  an  old  hut  in 
its  place  .?  And  did  not  I  go  into  that  hut,  and  did 
not  you  stand  stark  naked  right  before  my  eyes  .?  " 
he   asked. 

*'  I  wonder  the  king  can  talk  so,"  said  the  duke. 
"  I  think  the  trolls  must  have  bewitched  your  eyes 
in  the  forest  and  made  you  quite  crazy  ;  or  what 
do  you  think  ?  "  he  said,  and  turned  j'ound  to  the 
courtiers. 

They  bowed  and  bowed  till  their  backs  were  bent 

23 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

double,  and  agreed  with  everything  he  said,  there 
could  be  no  mistake  about  that.  The  king  rubbed 
his  eyes,  and  looked  round  about  him. 

"  I  suppose  it  is  as  you  say,  then,"  he  said  to  the 
duke,  "  and  it  is  well  I  have  got  back  my  proper  sight 
and  have  come  to  my  senses  again.  For  it  would 
have  been  a  sin  and  a  shame  if  I  had  let  you  be 
hanged,"  he  said  ;  and  so  he  was  happy  again,  and 
nobody  thought  any  more  about  the  matter. 

"  Once  bitten,  twice  shy,"  as  the  proverb  says  ;  and 
the  duke  now  took  upon  himself  to  manage  and  look 
after  most  of  his  affairs,  so  that  it  was  seldom  Lars 
had  to  wear  out  his  shoes.  The  king  soon  gave  the 
duke  half  the  kingdom  into  the  bargain  ;  so  he  had 
now  plenty  to  do,  and  people  said  they  would  have 
to  search  a  long  time  to  find  his  equal  in  wise  and 
just  ruling. 

Then  one  day  Lars  came  to  the  duke,  looking 
very  little  better  than  the  first  time  he  had  seen  him; 
but  he  was,  of  course,  more  humble,  and  did  not 
dare  to  giggle  and  make  grimaces. 

*'  You  do  not  want  my  help  any  longer,  now,"  he 
said ;  "  for  although  I  did  wear  out  my  shoes  at  first, 
I  am  now  unable  to  wear  out  a  single  pair,  and  my 
feet  will  soon  be  covered  all  over  with  moss.  So  I 
thought  I  might  now  get  my  leave  of  absence," 
he   said. 

The  duke  quite  agreed  with  him.  "  I  have  tried 
to  spare  you,  and  I  almost  think  I  could  do  without 

24 


"LARS,  MY    LAD!" 

you,"  he  said.  "•  But  the  pahice  and  all  the  rest  I  do 
not  want  to  lose,  for  such  a  clever  builder  as  you  I 
shall  never  [jet  airain  ;  nor  do  I  ever  want  to  adorn 
the  gallows   again,  as  you  can  well  understand  ;   so   I 


I.ARS   OX   THE  TRAMP. 


cannot  give  you  back  the  paper  on  any  account,"  he 
said. 

"  Well,  as  long  as  you  have  got  it,  I  need  not 
fear,"  said  Lars ;  "  but  if  anybody  else  should  get  hold 
of  it  there  will  be  nothing  but  running  and  trudging 
about  again,  and  that's  what  I  want  to  avoid ;  tor 
when   one   has   been   tramping  about   tor  a  thousand 

25 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

years,  as  I  have  done,  one  begins  to  get  tired  of  it," 
he  said. 

But  they  went  on  talking,  and  at  last  they  agreed 
that  the  duke  should  put  the  paper  in  the  box,  and 
then  bury  it  seven  ells  under  the  ground,  under  a 
stone  fixed  in  the  earth.  They  then  thanked  one 
another  for  the  time  they  had  spent  in  each  other's 
company,  and  so  they  parted. 

The  duke  carried  out  his  part  of  the  agreement, 
for  he  was  not  likely  to  want  to  change  it.  He 
lived  happv  and  contented  with  the  princess,  and  they 
had  both  sons  and  daughters.  When  the  king  died, 
he  got  the  whole  of  the  kingdom,  and  you  mav 
guess  he  was  none  the  worse  off  for  that  ;  and  there 
no  doubt  he  still  lives  and  reigns,  if  he  is  not 
dead. 

But  as  for  that  box  with  the  scrap  of  paper  in  it, 
there  are  many  who  are  still  running  about  looking 
for  it. 


26 


THE    SAUSAGE 

There  was  once  an  old  woman,  who  was  all  alone 
one  evening  in  her  cottage,  occupied  with  her 
household  affairs.  While  she  was  waiting  for  her 
husband,  who  was  away  at  work  over  in  the  forest, 
and  while  she  was  bustling  about,  a  fine,  grand 
lady  came  in,  and  so  the  woman  began  to  curtsey 
and  curtsey,  for  she  had  never  seen  such  a  grand 
person   before. 

"  I  should  be  so  much  obliged  if  you  would 
lend  me  your  brewing  pan,"  said  the  lady,  "  for  my 
daughter  is  going  to  be  married,  and  I  expect  guests 
from  all  parts." 

Oh,  dear,  yes  !  That  she  might  have,  said  the 
woman,  although  she  could  not  remember  whether 
she  had  ever  seen  her  before,  and  so  she  went  to 
fetch  the  pan. 

The  lady  took  it  and  thanked  the  woman,  saying 
that  she  would  pay  her  well  for  the  loan  ot  it,  and  so 
she   went   her   way.  - 

Two  days  afterwards  the  lady  came  back  with  it, 
and  this  time  she  also  found  the  woman  alone. 

27 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  Many  thanks  for  the  loan,"  said  the  lady,  "  and 
now   in   return  you   shall    have   three  wishes." 

And  with  this  the  lady  left,  and  vanished  so 
quickly  that  the  old  woman  had  not  even  time  to 
ask  her  name  or  where  she  lived.  But  that  did 
not  matter,  she  thought,  for  now  she  had  three 
wishes,  and  she  began  to  think  what  she  should 
wish  for.  She  expected  her  husband  back  soon, 
and  she  thought  it  would  be  best  to  wait  till  he 
came  home  and  could  have  a  say  in  the  matter. 
But  the  least  they  could  wish  for  must  be  a  fine 
big  farm — the  best  in  the  parish,  and  a  box  full  of 
money,  and  just  fancy  how  happy  and  comfortable 
they  would  be  then,  for  they  had  worked  so  hard 
all  their  days !  Ah,  yes,  then  the  neighbours  would 
have  something  to  wonder  at,  for  you  may  guess 
how  they  would  stare  at  all  the  fine  things  she 
would  have. 

But  since  they  were  now  so  rich  it  was  really  a 
shame  that  there  should  be  nothing  but  some  blue, 
sour  milk  and  some  hard  crusts  of  bread  in  the 
cupboard  for  her  husband  when  he  came  home 
tired  and  weary,  he  who  was  fond  of  hot  food.  She 
had  just  been  to  her  neighbour's,  and  there  she  had 
seen  a  fine  big  sausage,  which  they  were  going  to 
have  for    supper. 

*'  Ah,  deary  me,  I  wish  I  had  that  sausage  here  !  " 
sighed  the  old  woman  ;  and  the  next  moment  a  big 
sausage  lay  on  the  table  right  before  her. 

28 


THE   SAUSAGE 

She  was  just  going  to  put  it  in  the  pan  when  lier 
husband  came  in. 

*'  Father,  father  !  "  cried  the  woman,  "  it's  all 
over  with  our  troubles  and  hard  work  now.  I  lent 
my  brewing  pan  to  a  fine  lady,  and  when  she 
brought  it  back  she  promised  we  should  have  three 
wishes.  And  now  you  must  help  me  to  wish  for 
something  really  good,  for  you're  so  clever  at  hitting 
upon  the  right  thing — and  it's  all  true,  for  just  look 
at  the  sausage,  which  I  got  the  moment  I  wished 
for  it  !  " 

"  What  do  you  mean,  you  silly  old  woman  ?  " 
shouted  the  husband,  who  became  angry.  "  Have 
you  been  wishing  for  such  a  paltry  thing  as  a 
sausage,  when  you  might  have  had  anything  you 
liked  in  the  world  ?  I  wish  that  the  sausage  were 
sticking  to  your  nose,  since  you  haven't  any  better 
sense." 

All  at  once  the  woman  gave  a  crv,  for  sure  enough 
there  was  the  sausage  sticking  to  her  nose  ;  and  she 
began  tearing  and  pulling  away  at  it,  but  the  more 
she  pulled  the  firmer  it  seemed  to  stick.  She  was 
not  able  to  get  it  off^. 

'*  Oh,  dear  !  oh,  dear  !  "  sobbed  the  woman.  "  You 
don't  seem  to  have  any  more  sense  than  I,  since 
you    can    wish    me    such    ill    luck.      I    only   wanted 

something  nice  for  you,  and  then ,  oh,  dear  !   oh, 

dear  !  "  and  the  old  woman  went  on  crying  and 
sobbing. 

31 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

The  husband  tried,  of  course,  to  help  his  wife  to 
get  rid  of  the  sausage ;  but  for  all  he  pulled  and 
tugged  away  at  it  he  did  not  succeed,  and  he  was 
nearly  pulling  his  wife's  head  off  her  body. 

But  they  had  one  wish  left,  and  what  were  they 
now   to   wish  ? 

Yes,  what  were  they  to  wish  ?  They  might,  of 
course,  wish  for  something  very  fine  and  grand  ; 
but  what  could  they  do  with  all  the  finery  in 
the  world,  as  long  as  the  mistress  of  the  house 
had  a  long  sausage  sticking  to  the  end  of  her  nose  ? 
She  would  never  be  able  to  show  herself  any- 
where ! 

"  You  wish  for  something,"  said  the  woman  in 
the   midst   of  her   crying. 

'*  No,  you  wish,"  said  the  husband,  who  also 
began  crying  when  he  saw  the  state  his  wife  was 
in,  and  saw  the  terrible  sausage  hanging  down  her 
face. 

So  he  thought  he  would  make  the  best  use  he 
could  of  the   last  wish,   and   said  : 

"  I   wish  my  wife   was   rid  of  that  sausage." 

And   the   next  moment   it   was   gone ! 

They  both  became  so  glad  that  they  jumped  up 
and  danced  round  the  room  in  great  glee — for  you 
must  know  that  although  a  sausage  may  be  ever  so 
nice  when  you  have  it  in  your  mouth,  it  is  quite  a 
different  thing  to  having  one  sticking  to  your  nose 
all  your  life. 

32 


THE  OLD  WOMAN  AND  THE  TRAMP 

There  was  once  a  tramp,  who  went  plodding  his 
way  through  a  forest.  The  distance  between  the 
houses  was  so  great  that  he  had  little  hope  of 
linding  a  shelter  before  the  night  set  in.  But  all  of 
a  sudden  he  saw  some  lights  between  the  trees.  He 
then  discovered  a  cottage,  where  there  was  a  fire 
burning  on  the  hearth.  How  nice  it  would  be  to 
roast  one's  self  before  that  fire,  and  to  get  a  bite  of 
something,  he  thought  ;  and  so  he  dragged  himself 
towards    the  cottage. 

Just  then  an  old  woman  came  towards  him. 

"  Good  evening,  and  well  met  !  "  said  the  tramp. 

"  Good  evening,"  said  the  woman.  "  Where  do 
you  come  from  .?  " 

"  South  of  the  sun,  and  east  of  the  moon,"  said 
the  tramp  ;  "  and  now  I  am  on  the  way  home  again, 
for  I  have  been  all  over  the  world  with  the  exception 
of  this  parish,"  he  said. 

"  You  must  be  a  great  traveller,  then,"  said  the 
woman.     "  What  may  be  your  business  here  .?  " 

33  D 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

"  Oh,  I  want  a  shelter  for  the  night,"  he  said. 
"  I  thought  as  much,"  said  the  woman  ;  "  but  you 
may   as   well    get   away  from   here   at   once,   for   my 
husband  is  not  at  home,  and  my  place  is  not  an  inn," 
she  said. 

"  My  good  woman,"  said  the  tramp,  "  you  must 
not  be  so  cross  and  hard-hearted,  for  we  are  both 
human  beings,  and  should  help  one  another,  it  is 
written." 

"  Help  one  another?"  said  the  woman,  "help? 
Did  you  ever  hear  such  a  thing  ?  Who'll  help  me, 
do  vou  think  ?  I  haven't  got  a  morsel  in  the  house  ! 
No,  you'll  have  to  look  for  quarters  elsewhere,"  she 
said. 

But  the  tramp  was  like  the  rest  of  his  kind  ;  he 
did  not  consider  himself  beaten  at  the  first  rebuff. 
Although  the  old  woman  grumbled  and  complained 
as  much  as  she  could,  he  was  just  as  persistent  as 
ever,  and  went  on  begging  and  praying  like  a 
starved  dog,  until  at  last  she  gave  in,  and  he  got 
permission  to  lie  on  the  floor  for  the  night. 

That  was  very  kind,  he  thought,  and  he  thanked 
her  for  it. 

"  Better  on  the  floor  without  sleep,  than  suffer 
cold  in  the  forest  deep,"  he  said  ;  for  he  was  a 
merry  fellow,  this  tramp,  and  was  always  ready  with 
a  rhyme. 

When  he  came  into  the  room  he  could  see  that  the 
woman  was   not  so   badly  off  as  she  had  pretended  ; 

34 


THE    OLD    WOMAN    AND   THE    TRAMP 

but  she  WLis  a  [rreedv^  and  stiiiLTV  woman  of  the   worst 
sort,  and  was  always  complaining  and  grumbling. 
/    He  now  made  himself  very  agreeable,  of  course, 
and    asked    her   in   his   most   insinuating   manner  for 
.sojnething  to  eat. 

"  Where  am  I  to  get  it  from  ?  "  said  the  woman. 
"•  I  haven't  tasted  a  morsel  myself  the  whole  day." 

But  the  tramp  was  a  cunning  fellow,  he  was. 

"  Poor  old  granny,  vou  must  be  starving,"  he  said. 
"Well,  well,  I  suppose  I  shall  have  to  ask  you  to 
have    something   with   me,    then." 

"  Have  something  with  you  !  "  said  the  woman. 
"You  don't  look  as  if  you  could  ask  any  one  to  have 
anything  !  What  have  you  got  to  offer  one,  I 
should    like   to  know  ?  ' 

"  He  who  far  and  wide  does  roam  sees  many 
things  not  known  at  home  ;  and  he  who  many 
things  has  seen  has  wits  about  him  and  senses  keen," 
said  the  tramp.  "  Better  dead  than  lose  one's  head  ! 
Lend  me  a  pot,  grannie  !  " 

The  old  woman  now  became  very  inquisitive,  as 
you  may  guess,  and  so  she  let  him  have  a  pot. 

He  filled  it  with  water  and  put  it  on  the  fire,  and 
then  he  blew  with  all  his  might  till  the  fire  w^as 
burnino^  fiercelv  all  round  it.  Then  he  took  a  four- 
inch  nail  from  his  pocket,  turned  it  three  times  in 
his  hand  and  put  it  into  the  pot. 

The  woman  stared  with  all  her  might. 

"  Wliat's  this  going  to  be  ?  "  she  asked. 

3S 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  Nail  broth,"  said  the  tramp,  and  began  to  stir  the 
water  with  the  porridge  stick. 

"  Nail  broth  ?  "  asked  the  woman. 

*'  Yes,  nail  broth,"  said  the  tramp. 

The  old  woman  had  seen  and  heard  a  good  deal  in 
her  time,  but  that  anybody  could  have  made  broth  with 
a  nail,  well,  she  had  never  heard  the  like  before. 

*'  That's  something  for  poor  people  to  know,"  she 
said,  "  and  I  should  like  to  learn  how  to  make  it." 

'*  That  which  is  not  worth  having,  will  always  go 
a-begging,"  said  the  tramp. 

But  if  she  wanted  to  learn  how  to  make  it  she 
had  only  to  watch  him,  he  said,  and  went  on  stirring 
the  broth. 

The  old  woman  squatted  on  the  ground,  her  hands 
clasping  her  knees,  and  her  eyes  following  his  hand 
as  he  stirred  the   broth. 

'*  This  generally  makes  good  broth,"  he  said  ;  *'  but 
this  time  it  will  very  likely  be  rather  thin,  for  I  have 
been  making  broth  the  whole  week  with  the  same 
nail.  If  one  only  had  a  handful  of  sifted  oatmeal  to 
put  in,  that  would  make  it  all  right,"  he  said. 
'*  But  what  one  has  to  go  without,  it's  no  use 
thinking  more  about,  "  and  so  he  stirred  the  broth 
again. 

"  Well,  I  think  I  have  a  scrap  of  flour  some- 
where," said  the  old  woman,  and  went  out  to  fetch 
some,  and  it  was  both  good   and  fine. 

The  tramp  began  putting  the  flour  into  the  broth, 

36 


"what's  this  going  to  be?"  asked  the  woman,     "nail  broth,"  said 

the  tramp. 


THE    OLD   WOMAN    AND   THE   TRAMP 

and  went  on  stirring,  while  the  woman  sat  staring 
now  at  him  and  then  at  the  pot  until  her  eyes  nearly 
burst   their   sockets. 

"  This  broth  would  be  good  enough  for  company," 
he  said,  putting  in  one  handful  of  flour  after  an- 
other. "  If  I  had  only  a  bit  of  salted  beef  and  a  few 
potatoes  to  put  in,  it  would  be  fit  for  gentlefolks, 
however  particular  they  might  be,"  he  said.  "  But 
what  one  has  to  go  without,  it's  no  use  thinking 
more  about." 

When  the  old  woman  really  began  to  think  it 
over,  she  thought  she  had  some  potatoes,  and 
perhaps  a  bit  of  beef  as  well  ;  and  these  she  gave 
the  tramp,  who  went  on  stirring,  while  she  sat  and 
stared  as  hard  as  ever. 

"This  will  be  grand  enough  for  the  best  in  the 
land,"  he  said. 

*'  Well,  I  never !  "  said  the  woman  ;  "  and  just 
fancy — all  with   a  nail  !  " 

He  was  really  a  wonderful  man,  that  tramp  !  He 
could  do  more  than  drink  a  sup  and  turn  the  tankard 
up,  he  could. 

"  If  one  had  only  a  little  barley  and  a  drop  of 
milk,  we  could  ask  the  king  himself  to  have  some  of 
it,"  he  said  ;  "  for  this  is  what  he  has  every  blessed 
evening — that  I  know,  for  I  have  been  in  service 
under  the  king's  cook "   he  said. 

"  Dear  me  !  Ask  the  king  to  have  some  !  Well, 
I  never  !  "  exclaimed  the  woman,  slapping   her  knees. 

39 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

She    was    quite    awestruck    at    the     tramp    and     his 
grand  connections. 

"  But  what  one  has  to  go  without,  it's  no  use 
thinking  more  about,"  said  the  tramp. 

And  then  she  remembered  she  had  a  little 
barley  ;  and  as  for  milk,  well,  she  wasn't  quite  out  of 
that,  she  said,  for  her  best  cow  had  just  calved.  And 
then  she  went  to  fetch  both  the  one  and  the  other. 

The  tramp  went  on  stirring,  and  the  woman  sat 
staring,  one  moment  at  him  and  the  next  at  the  pot. 

Then   all   at   once   the   tramp   took  out   the  nail. 

"  Now  it's  ready,  and  now  we'll  have  a  real  good 
feast,"  he  said.  "  But  to  this  kind  of  soup  the  king 
and  the  queen  always  take  a  dram  or  two,  and  one 
sandwich  at  least.  And  then  they  always  have  a 
cloth  on  the  table  when  they  eat,"  he  said.  "  But 
what  one  has  to  go  without,  it's  no  use  thinking 
more   about." 

But  by  this  time  the  old  woman  herself  had  begun 
to  feel  quite  grand  and  fine,  I  can  tell  you  ;  and  if 
that  was  all  that  was  wanted  to  make  it  just  as  the 
king  had  it,  she  thought  it  would  be  nice  to  have  it 
just  the  same  way  for  once,  and  play  at  being  king 
and  queen  with  the  tramp.  She  went  straight  to  a 
cupboard  and  brought  out  the  brandy  bottle,  dram 
glasses,  butter  and  cheese,  smoked  beef  and  veal,  until 
at  last  the  table  looked  as  if  it  were  decked  out  for 
company. 

Never  in  her  life  had  the  old  woman  had  such  a 

40 


THE   OLD    WOMAN   AND   THE   TRAMP 

grand  feast,  and  never  had  she  tasted  such  broth,  and 
just  fancy,  made  only  with   a  nail  ! 

She  was  in  such  a  good  and  merry  humour  at 
having  learnt  such  an  economical  way  ot  making 
broth  that  she  did  not  know  how  to  make  enough  of 
the  tramp  who  had  taught  her  such  a  useful  thing. 

So  they  ate  and  drank,  and  drank  and  ate,  until 
they  became  both  tired  and  sleepy. 

The  tramp  was  now  going  to  lie  down  on  the 
floor.  But  that  would  never  do,  thought  the  old 
woman ;  no,  that  was  impossible.  "  Such  a  grand 
person  must  have  a  bed  to  lie  in,"  she  said. 

He  did  not  need  much  pressing.  "  It's  just  like 
the  sweet  Christmas  time,"  he  said,  "  and  a  nicer 
woman  I  never  came  across.  Ah,  well  !  Happy  are 
they  who  meet  with  such  good  people,"  said  he  ;  and 
he  lay  down   on   the  bed  and  went   asleep. 

And  next  morning  when  he  woke  the  first  thing 
he  got  was  coffee  and  a  dram. 

When  he  was  going  the  old  woman  gave  him  a 
bright  dollar  piece. 

"  And  thanks,  many  thanks,  for  what  you  have 
taught  me,"  she  said.  '*  Now  I  shall  live  in  comfort, 
since  I  have  learnt  how  to  make  broth  with  a  nail." 

"  Well,  it  isn't  very  difficult,  if  one  only  has  some- 
thing good  to  add  to  it,"  said  the  tramp  as  he  went 
his  way. 

The  woman  stood  at  the  door  staring  after  him. 

"  Such  people  don't  grow  on  every  bush,"  she  said. 

41 


WHAT  SHALL  BABY'S  NAME  Bp  ? 

There  was  once  upon  a  time  a  worthy  and 
well-to-do  couple,  who  lived  on  the  fat  of  the 
land,  and  had  their  house  full  of  everything  that 
was  good  and  nice.  But  of  children  they  had  not 
many,  for  there  was  only  one  daughter  in  the  house, 
and  her  they  called  Peggy,  although  she  was 
christened  Margaret,  as  you  may  guess. 

Whatever  the  cause  might  be,  whether  the  girl 
was  ugly  or  whether  there  was  anything  else  the 
matter  with  her,  she  grew  up  to  be  a  big  wench  of 
full  five  and  twenty  years,  and  yet  there  was  no 
suitor  who  would  look  at  her. 

"  It's  very  strange,"  thought  the  father  to  himself ; 
for  all  the  lads  in  the  parish  knew,  of  course,  that  he 
had  one  of  the  finest  farms,  and  many,  many  hundreds 
of  dollars  in  money  as  well,  and  that  he  could  give 
his  daughter  as  a  dowry  both  oxen  and  cows,  goats 
and  sheep,  and  that  he  would  let  his  son-in-law  take 
over  the  whole  of  the  farm  and  keep  the  old  folks  till 
they  died.     He  was  never  sparing  with  words  on  this 

42 


WHAT   SHALL   BABY'S    NAME    BE? 

subject.  "  Yes,  they  must  be  a  silly,  crack-brained  lot 
when  they  don't  avail  themselves  of  such  an  oppor- 
tunity, and  get  hold  of  one's  only  daughter,"  thought 
both  the  man  and  his  wife.  Peggy  thought  the 
same,  although  she  did  not  say  as  much  ;  but  the  lads 
seemed  to  keep  away  just  as  much  as  ever,  for  day 
after  day  passed,  and  year  after  year,  but  still  no 
suitor  came. 

So  one  summer  evening,  as  the  man  sat  looking 
down  the  road  and  longing  that  a  suitor  might  come, 
it  happened  that  one  of  the  best  and  smartest  lads 
from  one  of  the  farms  in  the  parish  came  strolling 
up  the  hill. 

"  Mother,  mother  !  "  cried  the  man.  "I  think 
he's  coming  at  last  !      Come  and  have  a  look  I  " 

His  wite  came  running  into  the  room  and  began 
staring  out  through  the  window. 

"  Well,  what  did  I  say  .?  "  she  exclaimed.  "  If  it 
isn't  Peter  South-farm  !      Sure  enough  it's  he  !  " 

She  rushed  out  of  the  room  again  and  began  to 
bustle  about  and  tidy  her  chamber,  and  called  Peggy. 

"  Look  out,  wench  !     Now  he's  coming  !  " 

"Whom  do  you   mean,  mother  ? 

"  Why,  your  sweetheart,  of  course." 

"  Eh,  you  don't  say  so,  mother  !  "  cried  Peggy, 
and  became  so  pleased  that  she  was  quite  beside 
herself 

And  now  they  set  to  work  to  tidy  and  smarten 
themselves,    and   prepare  something  for    the  stranger 

43 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

who  was   coming  up   the  road,  for  such  a  rare  guest 
one  could  not  expect  every  day. 

In  the  meantime  the  suitor — for  they  had  guessed 
quite  rightly,  a  suitor  it  was — had  entered  the  room, 
and  greeted  the  man  with  a  "  good  evening." 

'*  Good  evening,"  replied  the  man,  and  asked  him 
to  sit  down.  "  One  needs  some  rest,  when  one  has 
walked  up  a  steep  hill  like  this,"  he  said. 

But  the  lad  needed  some  pressing,  it  seemed. 

He  did  not  know  if  he  would  be  welcome,  he  said  ; 
and  so  it  was  best  that  he  should  remain  at  the  door 
till  he  had  told  his  errand. 

The  man  felt  his  heart  leaping  in  his  breast. 

For  many  years  he  had  longed  for  some  one  to 
come  on  such  an  errand,  for  he  knew  well  what  the 
lad  was  after. 

*'  What  errand  might  that  be  .?  "  he  asked. 

"  Well,  it's  rather  an  important  matter,"  said  the 
suitor. 

The  man  called  his  wife,  and  she  came  in  and 
greeted   the   lad. 

"  Excuse  me — but  may  I  ask,"  said  the  lad,  "  if 
there  is  a  nice  young  girl  here  called  Margaret  ?  " 

Yes,  indeed  there  was — their  only  child,  a  big 
grown-up  wench  !  And  so  clever  with  her  hands — 
she  could  sew  and  stitch,  spin  and  weave,  both  plain 
and  striped  and  patterned — and  she  wasn't  above 
taking  oif  her  gold  ring  and  giving  a  hand  at  heavy 
work,   if  it   was   wanted.      And   then   she   was   their 

44 


WHAT   SHALL   BABY'S  NAME   BE? 

only  daughter,  and  was  going  to  have  the  whole 
of  the  farm,  the  oxen  and  cows,  the  goats  and  sheep, 
the  silver  and  gold,  the  clothes,  the  money  and 
woven   stLitis   of  all   kinds  as   her  dowry. 

Both  the  man  and  his  wife  went  on  jabbering  and 
chattering  at  the  same  time,  and  got  so  excited  that 
it  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  the  suitor  was 
allowed  to  explain  his  errand. 

She  was  just  the  girl  he  was  looking  out  tor,  he 
said,  and  as  he  had  no  spokesman  with  him  he  would 
have  to  speak  for  himself,  and  tell  them  how  he  was 
off  at  home,  and  hear  if  they,  who  were  her  parents, 
would  be  satisfied  with  a  son-in-law  like  him,  he  said. 

"  Well,  that  is  quite  possible,"  said  the  man.  He 
himself  was  now  so  old  and  worn  out  and  broken 
down  with  rheumatics  that  he  wanted  some  one  to 
take  over  the  farm,  so  he  could  not  very  well  retuse 
a  good  offer,  he  said.  But  one  could  not  talk  over 
such,  matters  at  the  door  ;  the  lad  must  come  inside, 
and  partake  of  what  his  wife  could  offer. 

"  But  this  much  I  may  say,  at  any  rate,"  said  the 
man,  trying  to  put  on  a  grand  air,  "  that  many  have 
already  spoken  to  me  on  the  subject  ;  but  it  is  you,  do 
you  see,  just  you,  that  I  have  been  waiting  tor,"  he 
said  ;  "  and  you  may  reckon  yourself  lucky  that  you 
have  not  come  too  late.  And,  mother,  you  see,  she 
agrees  with  everything  I  say — or,  what  do  you  think, 
mother  ^  " 

She  had  so  much   to  attend  to  and  look  after,  she 

45 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

said,  but  she  was  of  the  same  mind  as  her  husband. 
"  And  Peggy,"  said  the  man,  "  she  is  a  good  and 
obedient  child.      She  does  everything  we  tell  her." 

Peggy  stood  outside  the  door  and  kept  it  ajar,  while 
she  peeped  through  the  opening,  and  would  have  said 
"  yes  "  there  and  then,  if  it  had  only  been  proper.  But 
she  could  not  show  herself  too  willing,  either. 

The  man  and  the  suitor  now  began  to  help  them- 
selves to  the  refreshments,  and  to  talk  about  their 
farms  and  about  the  harvest,  and  about  the  number  of 
cattle  each  of  them  could  teed  during  the  winter  on 
their  farms,  and  such  things,  while  the  wife  was  busy 
smartening  up  Peggy,  whose  head  was  so  lull  of 
courtship  and  marriage  that  she  was  quite  unfit  to  do 
anything  for  herself.  But  when  she  was  dressed  she 
looked  very  smart  and  shone  like  the  sun,  and  then, 
as  you  m.ay  guess,  she  was  to  go  in  and  see  her  suitor. 

But  she  could  not  go  in  empty  handed,  and  so  her 
mother  hit  upon  the  idea — for  women  are  always  so 
artful — that  Peggy  should  go  down  to  the  cellar  for 
beer,  and  then  come  in  to  her  suitor  with  the  large 
silver  cup  in  her  hand. 

While  she  was  on  her  way  down  to  the  cellar  she 
began  thinking  that  when  she  was  married  it  might 
easily  happen  that  she,  like  others,  would  have  a 
child  ;  and  then  she  went  on  thinking  and  pondering 
what  she  should  call  her  first  baby,  for  a  name  it  must 
have,  of  course  ;  but  what  should  it  be  ^     Yes,  what 


ought  she  to  call  it  ? 


46 


vl,\fV  _ 


ON    HER   WAY   DOWN   TO   THE   CELLAR   SHE   BEGAN   THINKING   WHAT 
SHE   SHOULD   CALL   HER   FIRST   BABY. 


braW 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


WHAT    SHALL    BABY'S    NAME    BE? 

But  she  could  not  make  up  her  mind  about  it, 
although  she  thought  and  pondered  all  she  could,  till 
at  last  she  quite  forgot  both  the  cellar  and  the  beer, 
the  suitor  and  the  rest  of  the  world.  It  was  really 
not  an  easy  matter  either,  for  she  could  not  know 
whether  it  would  be  a  boy  or  a  girl;  but  whatever  it 
might  be,  the  baby  must  have  a  name,  and  a  really 
line  name,  too,  you  must  know. 

But  what  should  it  be  ? 

Yes,  what  should  baby's  name  be  ? 

While  she  stood  there  meditating  her  father  and 
the  suitor  sat  in  the  room  partaking  of  the  refresh- 
ments before  them — smoked  ham  and  cheese  and 
other  good  things  which  the  wife  had  in  her  cupboard. 

One  oatmeal  cake  after  the  other  disappeared 
while  they  were  waiting  for  the  beer  and  the  girl, 
and  they  began  to  think  that  the  wolves  must  have 
got  hold  of  her,  since  she  did  not  come  back. 

"  She  is  so  shy  and  childish,  that  girl  of  mine," 
said  the  wife,  "  and  I  shouldn't  wonder  if  she  is  afraid 
to  come  in.      I  shall  have  to  fetch  her,  I  suppose  !  " 

And  she  hurried  out  to  look  for  Peggy,  whom  she 
found  standing  outside  the  cellar-door,  pondering  and 
thinking. 

'*  You  are  like  Noah's  raven,  you  are  !  How  can 
a  big  wench  like  you  stand  there  like  that  ?  I  do 
believe  you  have  lost  your  senses  !  Why  don't  you 
go  in  to  your  suitor  ?  "  said  her  mother.  *'  What  is 
it  you  are  thinking  about  ?  " 

49  E 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  Oh,  my  dear  mother,"  said  Peggy,  "  I  am  just 
thinking  what  my  first  baby  should  be  called.  Can 
you  tell  me,  mother  ?  " 

"  Bless  me,  girl,  if  I  can,"  said  the  woman  ;  *'  but 
a  name  it  must  have,  the  little  angel — and  a  line 
name  it  must  be.  But  what  shall  it  be  .?  Let  me 
see. 

And  she  too  began  thinking  and  remained  stand- 
ing there. 

As  neither  his  daughter  nor  his  wife  came  back 
the  man  became  uneasy. 

"  This  is  really  too  bad,"  he  said,  "  that  Peggy 
should  make  herself  so  precious.  She  is  not  generally 
so  contrary,  and  I  am  sure  that  she'll  say  '  yes ' 
just  as  willingly  as  we  do,"  he  said.  *'  I  suppose  I 
must  go  myself  and  fetch  her." 

And  so  he  limped  out  of  the  room  as  quickly  as 
he  could. 

When  he  saw  his  wife  and  daughter  standing  out- 
side the  cellar-door  he  burst  into  a  furious  rage  and 
shouted  : 

*'  I  think  you  must  have  gone  out  of  your  minds, 
standing  there  like  a  pair  of  sundials,  while  you  have 
got  a  suitor  in  the  house  !     Just  come  in,  will  you  ?  " 

*'  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  wife  ;  "  but  I  must  tell  you,  we 
have  been  trying  to  settle  a  very  ticklish  business." 

"  Well,  then,  what  might  that  be  ?  "  said  the 
man. 

"  Why, — what  shall  Peggy's  first  baby  be  called  ?  " 

50 


WHAT   SHALL   BABY'S    NAME   BE? 

"  Oh,  is  that  it  ?  "  said  the  man,  looking  as  tender 
and  pleased  as  if  he  had  the  youngster  on  his  arm. 
"  So,  that's  it,  is  it  ? — Well,  the  baby  must  have 
a  really  fine  name, — the  little  angel  !  But  what  shall 
we  call  it  ? — Yes,  what  shall  we  call  it  ? 

He  began  to  scratch  his  head  and  to  think  and 
ponder.  He  did  not  know  either  whether  it 
would  be  a  boy  or  a  girl, — but  no  matter  which  it 
was,  the  baby  must  have  a  name,  and  what  should  it 
be  called  ? — yes,  what  should  they  call  it  ?  " 

He  couldn't  make  up  his  mind  either,  and  so  he 
remained  standing  there  as  well. 

In  the  meantime  the  suitor  had  been  sitting  all  by 
himself  in  the  parlour,  and  was  getting  tired  of  waiting. 
So,  as  neither  the  maiden  nor  the  old  folks  came 
back,  he  thought  they  must  be  doing  it  purposely, 
and  had  made  up  their  minds  to  make  a  fool  of  him ; 
whereupon  he  became  furious,  and  took  his  hat  and 
went. 

When  he  came  out  into  the  farmyard  he  saw  them 
all  three  standing  outside  the  cellar-door. 

The  man  caught  sight  of  him  first.  *'  I  must  tell 
you,  mv  lad,"  he  said,  "  we  have  been  standing  here 
thinking  over  a  very  important  matter, — and  that  is, 
what   shall    Peggy's   first   baby  be  called  .?  " 

"  Good  gracious  !  "  said  the  suitor,  "  that'll  surely 
bear  thinking  over,  and  you  may  have  to  think  it  over 
for  a  long  time,"  he  said,  "  for  the  baby  will  not  be 
called  after   me  !     That's   as  certain  as  the  sun  rose 

51  E  2 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

this  morning."  And  with  that  he  lifted  his  hat 
and  went  down  the  hill. 

The  old  man  began  to  shout  after  him,  but  it  was 
of  no  use.  He  went  down  the  road  and  never  came 
back  again. 

What  happened  afterwards  I  have  not  heard  a 
word  about  ;  but  if  a  suitor  ever  did  call  again, 
they  would,  no  doubt,  take  care  not  to  lose  their 
heads  over  such  useless  speculations, — for  we  all 
know  that  there  is  a  time  for  everything,  and  that 
we   should   strike   while  the  iron   is  hot. 


52 


ST.    PETER    AND    THE    TWO    WOMEN 

In  the  days  when  St.  Peter  walked  about  on  earth 
he  came  late  one  evening  to  a  large  farm,  and  asked 
for  shelter  for  the  night.  The  master  was  not  at 
home,  but  his  wife  was  sitting  all  alone  ;  and 
although  she  was  very  rich  and  had  an  abundance 
of  everything  one  could  wish,  she  was  niggardly 
beyond  all  belief.  She  could  not  give  him  shelter 
— was  it  likely  she  could  ? — and  what  should  she 
give  him  to  eat,  and  where  should  she  put  him  ? 
No,  he  would  have  to  try  somewhere  else,  she  said  ; 
and,  as  there  was  no  help  for  it,  so  he  did. 

When  he  had  gone  a  little  way  he  came  to  a 
small  cottage,  where  there  lived  a  poor  widow,  who 
struggled  and  toiled  at  spinning  and  weaving  in 
order  to  scrape  together  a  little  food  for  herself  and 
her  children.  St.  Peter  went  into  the  parlour  and 
told  her  his  errand.  The  woman  said,  what  was 
only  too  true,  that  she  had  little  either  of  money  or  of 
food,  but  the  little  she  had  she  would  willingly  share 
with  him,  since  he  had  to  go  from  house  to  house 
and  beg  for  scraps  of  food — for  she  did  not  know  it 

53 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

was  St.  Peter,  nor  did  he  say  anything  about  it 
himself  either. 

So  he  got  permission  to  stop  there  for  the  night, 
and  he  was  quite  welcome  to  what  she  could  give 
him  to  eat.  Early  next  morning  he  thanked  her  for 
her  kindness  and  got  ready  to  go. 

"  I  have  no  money  to  pay  you  with,"  he  said  ; 
"  but  what  I  can  give  I  will  give  you.  The  first 
thing  you  do  to-day  you  shall  be  doing  all  the  day," 
he  said. 

The  woman  could  not  understand  what  he  meant 
hy  this  ;  but  as  soon  as  he  was  gone  she  took  her 
yard-measure,  for  she  had  finished  a  piece  of  weaving 
and  was  going  to  take  it  off  the  loom  in  the  evening, 
as  she  wanted  to  know  how  long  it  was. 

She  began  to  measure  and  to  count,  and  she  got  to 
seventy,  eighty,  ninety  and  one  hundred  ;  but  it  was 
the  most  remarkable  piece  of  cloth  she  had  ever  seen, 
for  the  more  she  measured  the  longer  it  became. 
The  whole  room  became  full  of  it,  so  that  she  had 
to  go  into  the  passage,  but  still  there  was  no  end  to 
the  piece. 

The  passage,  too,  became  filled,  so  she  had  to 
go  out  on  the  grass.  She  measured  and  measured, 
but  still  the  cloth  grew  longer,  much  longer  than 
she  could  measure.  She  would  not  give  in,  but  kept 
unceasingly  at  it  the  whole  day.  Towards  evening 
the  rich  farmer's  wife  came  past  the  cottage,  and 
when    she     saw    what    the    widow    was    doing    she 

54 


"^  -3 

s  z 

>  2 

>  a 


<    -- 


a   :;: 

2    J 


S5     Z 
2     O 

a 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


ST.    PETER    AND    THE    TWO    WOMEN 

stopped  all  at  once  and  wondered  greatly  at  what 
she  saw,  for  such  a  piece  of  weaving  no  human 
being  had  surely  ever  seen. 

"  What  in  all  the  world  are  you  doing  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Twenty  -  three,  twenty  -  four,  twenty  -  hve  ! 
Measuring  a  piece  of  weaving,"  said  the  widow. 
She  was  far  on  in  the  thirteenth  hundred. 

"  Where  in  all  the  world  have  you  got  such  a 
long  piece  from  .?  "  asked  the  woman. 

"  Twelve  and  twenty,  thirteen  and  twenty,  nine- 
teen and  twenty,"  said  the  widow — she  had  lost 
count,  but  still  she  kept  on  measuring.  "  Yes,  you 
may  well  ask  that,"  she  said,  and  went  on  measuring. 
"  A  man  came  here  last  night  and  got  a  night's 
lodging,  and  when  he  left  here  this  morning  he  said 
that  the  first  thing  I  began  with  I  should  be  doing 
the  whole  day  ;  and  now  I  have  been  measuring  this 
cloth,   which   seems  never  to   come   to   an   end." 

"  Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  How  stupid  I  was !  How 
terribly  stupid  I  was  to  let  him  go  !  "  said  the  farmer's 
wife  ;  "  for  he  came  to  our  place  also,  you  must 
know.  But,  my  dear,  if  he  should  ever  come  this 
way  again  and  look  in  upon  you  you  might  send 
him  to  me,  since  you  have   been  so  lucky,"  she  said. 

Yes,  that  she  would  be  glad  to  do,  said  the  widow. 
She  wished  other  people  might  be  just  as  fortunate 
as  she  herself  had  been,  although  she  had  nothing 
to   thank  the  farmer's   wife  for. 

Of  course,  the  widow  could  not  use  all  the  cloth 

57 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

herself,  so  she  went  to  some  of  her  neighbours  to 
hire  some  oxen  to  cart  it  to  town  ;  and,  just  fancy, 
the  cloth  filled  three  cart-loads  !  Such  a  quantity  of 
cloth  had  never  been  seen  in  one  day  in  the  market 
place  ;  but  she  got  rid  of  every  yard  for  all  that,  and 
returned  home  with  so  much  money  that  she  had  no 
longer  any  need  to  trouble  about  clothes  and  food. 

But  the  rich  farmer's  wife  went  home  and  began 
to  bustle  about  and  get  things  ready,  so  that  she 
should  be  able  to  treat  the  stranger  in  good  style 
it  he  should  come  back  to  her  ;  but  she  knew  no 
more  than  the  widow  that  the  stranger  was  St.  Peter. 

She  went  about  in  great  expectation,  and  dared 
scarcely  go  out  of  the  room,  so  afraid  was  she  that  he 
should  come  in  her  absence  and  that  she  should  miss 
him.  She  had  bought  a  very  fine  piece  of  cloth  and 
placed  it  on  the  loom,  and  the  measure  was  lying  on 
the  top  of  it,  so  she  was  fully  prepared  for  him  ;  but 
day  after  day  passed  and  week  after  week,  and  she 
grew  angry  and  impatient  because  he  was  such  a  silly 
fellow  not  to  have  the  sense  to  find  his  way  there. 

Late  one  evening  there  was  a  knock  at  the  door. 

The  woman  went  out  into  the  passage  and  pulled 
back  the  bolt.  It  was  St.  Peter,  who  asked  for 
shelter  for  the  night.  Yes,  that  he  should  have, 
sure  enough  ;  and  the  woman  curtseyed  and  behaved 
in   a  way  that  was  quite  ridiculous. 

She  then  put  the  best  she  had  on  the  table,  so 
that  he  should  be  quite  satisfied.     In  the   morning 

58 


ST.  PETER   AND   THE   TWO   WOMEN 

he  thanked  her  for  her  kindness  and  the  good  food, 
and   prepared  to  go. 

"  just  one  word,  my  good  man,"  said  the  woman  ; 


"YOU    MIGHT   AS   WELL   GIVE   ME   A   PROMISE,"    SAID   THE   WOMAN,    AND 
CURTSEYED. 

"  when  you  got  shelter  at  my  neighbour's  some  time 
ago  you  gave  her  a  promise,  and  you  might  as  well 
give  me  one,"  she  said,  and  curtseyed  and  made 
herself  most  agreeable  and  pleasant. 

59 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  What  promise  might  that  be  ?  "  asked  St.  Peter. 

"  Well,  you  said  that  whatever  she  began  with 
she  should  be  doing  all  the  day,"  said  the  woman. 

"  Would  you  also  like  that  ?  "  said   St.    Peter. 

"  Should  I  like  it  ?  Why,  my  good  man,  of 
course,  I  should,"  said  the  woman.  "  I  have  the 
measure   in   my  hand   and   the   cloth   handy." 

"  Well,  I  suppose  I  must  do  the  same  for  you  as 
for  her  then,"  said  St.  Peter;  "so  the  first  thing 
you  do  when  I  am  gone  you  shall  be  doing  the 
whole  day.  But,  whatever  you  do,  think  it  well 
over  first,"  he  said. 

The  woman  curtseyed  and  thanked  him,  and  was 
very  happy  and  contented, 

"  Now  I  shall  measure  so  much  cloth  that  I  shall 
have  more  than  the  poor  body  over  yonder,"  she 
thought  ;  and  turned  round  and  went  back  into  the 
room. 

Suddenly  she  remembered  she  ought  to  have 
drawn  some  water  from  the  pump  for  her  kettle, 
so  that  she  could  go  on  measuring  the  cloth  without 
being  disturbed.  So  she  went  to  the  pump  and 
began  to  draw  the  water  ;  but  as  this  was  the  first 
thing  she  did  after  St.  Peter  was  gone,  there  was  no 
help  for  it — she  must  go  on  pumping  water  the 
whole  day.  The  water  came  rushing  out  of  the 
pump  and  ran  all  over  the  yard.  It  rose  higher  and 
higher  as  the  hours  crept  by,  and  the  woman  began 
to  shout  and  cry  for  help  ;   but  no  one  came  to  her 

60 


ST.    PETER    AND   THE    TWO    WOMEN 

assistance,  and  probably  no  one  could  have  helped 
her  either.  When  the  sun  was  about  to  set  the 
water  had  reached  up  to  her  chin.  She  was  now 
quite  exhausted,  and  all  of  a  sudden  she  sank  back 
into  the  water  and  was  drowned.  The  yard  measure 
and  the  cloth  floated  about  on  the  water,  and  they 
mav   be  lioatins:  there  still  for  all   I   know. 


6i 


THE  OLD  WOMAN  AND  THE  FISH 

There  was  once  upon  a  time  an  old  woman  who 
lived  in  a  miserable  cottage  on  the  brow  of  a  hill 
overlooking  the  town.  Her  husband  had  been 
dead  for  many  years,  and  her  children  were  in 
service  round  about  the  parish,  so  she  felt  rather 
lonely  and  dreary  in  her  cottage,  and  otherwise  she 
was  not  particularly  well  off  either. 

But  when  it  has  been  ordained  that  one  shall  live, 
one  cannot  think  of  one's  funeral  ;  and  so  one 
has  to  take  the  world  as  it  is,  and  still  be 
satisfied  ;  and  that  was  about  all  the  old  woman 
could  console  herself  with.  But  that  the  road  up 
which  she  had  to  carry  the  pails  from  the  well 
should  be  so  heavy  ;  and  that  the  axe  should  have 
such  a  blunt  and  rusty  edge,  so  that  it  was  only  with 
the  greatest  difficulty  that  she  could  cut  the  little 
firewood  she  had;  and  that  the  stuff  she  was 
weaving  was  not  sufficient  ; — all  this  grieved  her 
greatly,  and  caused  her  to  complain  from  time  to 
time. 

So  one  day,  when   she  had   pulled   the   bucket  up 

62 


THE  OLD  WOMAN  AND  THE  MSH 

from  the  well,  she  happened  to  rind  a  small  pike  in 
the  bucket,  which  did  not  at  all  displease  her. 

"  Such  fish  does  not  come  into  my  pot  every 
day,"  she  said  ;  but  now  she  could  have  a  really 
grand  dish,  she  thought.  But  the  fish  which  she 
had  got  this  time  was  no  fool  ;  it  had  the  gift  of 
speech,  that  it  had. 

"  Let  me  go  !  "  said  the  fish. 

The  old  woman  began  to  stare,  you  may  be  sure. 
Such  a  fish  she  had  never  before  seen  in  this 
world. 

"  Are  you  so  much  better  than  other  fish,  then  ?  " 
she  said,  '*  and  too  good  to  be  eaten  ?  " 

"  Wise  is  he  who  does  not  eat  all  he  gets  hold 
of,"  said  the  fish  ;  '*only  let  me  go  and  you  shall 
not   remain  without  reward  for  your  trouble." 

"  I  like  a  fish  in  the  bucket  better  than  all 
those  frisking  about  free  and  frolicsome  in  the 
lakes,"  said  the  old  woman.  "  And  what  one  can 
catch  with  one  hand,  one  can  also  carry  to  one's 
mouth,"  she  said. 

"That  may  be,"  said  the  fish;  "but  if  you  do 
as  I   tell  you,  you  shall   have  three  wishes." 

"  Wish  in  one  fist,  and  spit  in  the  other,  and 
you'll  soon  see  which  you  will  get  filled  first,"  said 
the  woman.  "  Promises  are  well  enough,  but  keeping 
them  is  better,  and  I  sha'n't  believe  much  in  you  till 
I  have  got  you  in  the  pot,"  she  said. 

"  You    should   mind    that   tongue    of   yours,"   said 

^3 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

the  fish,  "  and  Hsten  to  my  words.  Wish  for  three 
things,  and  then  you'll  see  what  will  happen,"  he 
said. 

Well,  the  old  woman  knew  well  enough  what  she 
wanted  to  wish,  and  there  might  not  be  so  much 
danger  in  trying  how  far  the  fish  would  keep  his 
word,  she  thought. 

She    then    began  thinking   of  the   heavy    hill  up 
from  the  well. 

"  I  would  wish  that  the  pails  could  go  of  them- 
selves to  the  well  and  home  again,"  she  said. 

"  So  they  shall,"  said  the  fish. 

Then  she  thought  of  the  axe,  and  how  blunt 
it  was. 

"  I  would  wish  that  whatever  I  strike  shall  break 
right  off,"  she  said. 

'*  So  it  shall,"  said  the  fish. 

And  then  she  remembered  that  the  stuff  she  was 
weaving  was  not  long  enough. 

"  I  would  wish  that  whatever  I  pull  shall  become 
long,"  she  said. 

"  That  it  shall,"  said  the  fish.  "  And  now,  let  me 
down  into  the  well  again." 

Yes,  that  she  would,  and  all  at  once  the  pails 
began  to  shamble  up  the  hill. 

'*  Dear  me,  did  you  ever  see  anything  like  it  .?  " 
The  old  woman  became  so  glad  and  pleased  that 
she  slapped  herself  across  the  knees. 

Crack,  crack  it  sounded  ;   and  then  both  her  legs 

64 


"'i^'" , '■V%/" 


ALL  AT   ON'CE  THE   TAILS   BEGAN    TO   SHAMBLE    UP   THE   HILL. 


THE  OLD  WOMAN  AND  THE  FISH 

fell  off,  and  she  was  left  sitting  on  the  top  of  the  lid 
over  the  well. 

Now  came  a  change.  She  began  to  cry  and  wail, 
and  the  tears  started  from  her  eyes,  whereupon  she 
began  blowing  her  nose  in  her  apron,  and  as  she 
tugged  at  her  nose  it  grew  so  long,  so  long  that  it 
was  terrible  to  see. 

That  is  what  she  got  for  her  wishes  !  Well, 
there  she  sat,  and  there  she  no  doubt  still  sits  on  the 
lid  of  the  well.  And  if  you  want  to  know  what  it 
is  to  have  a  long  nose,  you  had  better  go  there  and 
ask  her,  for  she  can  tell  you  all  about  it,  she  can. 


67  F  2 


THE    VALIANT   CHANTICLEER 

There  was  once  upon  a  time  a  married  couple 
who  had  no  children,  and  they  did  not  know  what 
to  do  to  get  a  child.  The  husband  did  not  seem  to 
mind  so  much,  but  the  wife  could  not  rest  till  she 
had  a  child.  She  must  have  one,  whatever  hap- 
pened ;  and  she  went  to  doctors  and  wise  men,  and 
consulted  all  who  knew  a  little  more  than  other 
people,  but  to  no  avail.  There  was  no  one  who 
could  give  her  any  advice. 

So  one  evening  an  old  woman  came  and  asked  for 
shelter  for  the  night,  which  she  got.  But  when 
women  get  together  they  always  find  something  to 
talk  about,  and  before  long  the  wife  had  told  the  old 
woman  all  about  herself  and  her  affairs,  and  what  a 
pity  it  was  that  she  had  no  children. 

"  Is  it  no  worse  than  that  ? "  said  the  woman. 
"  There's  a  way  out  of  that  !  Look,"  she  said, 
"  here  is  an  egg  for  you,  and  when  you  put  it  in 
your  bosom  and  keep  it  nice  and  warm,  you  will 
soon  have  a  little  one,  and  a  wonderful  child  it  will 
be ;  such  a  child  you  have  never  seen,"  she  said. 

68 


THE   VALIANT   CHANTICLEER 

The  wife  thought  this  was  strange,  but  there  are 
so  many  strange  things  in  this  world  that  it  was 
hardly  worth  while  to  wonder  much  about  it.  She 
took  the  egg  and  thanked  the  woman  for  her  good 
advice,  and  said  she  would  do  as  she  was  bid,  and 
with  this  they  parted. 

She  put  the  egg  in  her  bosom  and  tended  it  well 
and  carefully,  and  kept  it  as  warm  as  she  possibly 
could,  and  after  a  time  a  little  cockerel  flew  out  of  it. 
The  wife  was  not  very  pleased  at  this,  you  can 
understand,  for  she  had  not  expected  it  would  end  in 
this  way. 

But  as  she  had  hatched  him  herself,  she  supposed 
he  must  be  her  child  after  all,  such  as  he  was.  She 
looked  after  him  and  gathered  food  together  for  him, 
and  cackled  to  him,  and  made  herself  as  much  like  a 
hen  as  she  could.  And  so  he  grew  up  and  got  both 
feathers  and  comb,  and  became  so  big,  so  big,  that 
his  equal  had  never  been  seen  before. 

When  he  was  full-feathered  he  had  to  go  out  and 
find  what  he  could,  and  he  began  to  kick  and  scratch 
about  in  the  dust  heap,  so  that  the  rubbish  was 
thrown  up  in  the  air  so  high  that  no  one  could  see 
what  became  of  it.  But  he  wanted  to  try  it  he 
could  do  more  than  that,  and  so  he  strutted  out  into 
the  corn-field,  where  the  master  of  the  house  was 
toiling  away  and  ploughing  with  the  one  ox  he 
possessed.  But  he  got  on  very  slowly,  so  the  cock 
thought  he  ought  to  help  him.      So  he  was  yoked  to 

69 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

the  plough  ;  and  then  things  took  a  different  turn, 
for  now  they  went  at  such  a  speed  that  the  master 
had  to  run  as  fast  as  he  could,  and  in  a  little  while 
the  cock  had  ploughed  the  whole  field.  He  now 
thought  he  was  a  full-grown  fellow,  and  that  he 
could  get  married  ;  but  not  to  a  little  farm-yard  hen, 
that  would  never  do  for  him.  No,  he  must  look 
higher,  and  so  he  flapped  his  wings  and  crowed. 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine ! "  and  he 
wanted  to  set  out  for  the   king's   palace. 

But  he  must  have  a  suitable  conveyance  for  the 
bride,  he  thought,  even  if  he  had  to  drag  it  himself; 
and  as  there  was  nothing  else  to  be  found,  he  took 
the  big  soup-ladle.  The  wife  cried  and  cackled  after 
him,  but  out  into  the  world  he  must  go,  and  away 
he  went. 

All  at  once  he  met  a  fox. 

"  Where  are  you  going  .?  "  asked  the  fox. 

"  To  the  king's  palace,"  crowed  the  cock. 

"  May  I  come  with  you  .?  "  said  the  fox. 

"  Sit  up  behind,"  cried  the  cock  ;  and  the  fox 
took  a  seat  in  the  ladle,  and  away  they  went. 

Then  he  met  a  wolf. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?  "  asked  the  wolf. 

"  To  the  king's  palace,"  crowed  the  cock. 

"  May  I  come  with  you  ^  "  said  the  wolf. 

"  Sit  up  behind,"  cried  the  cock  ;  and  then  the 
wolf  seated  himself  in  the  ladle,  and  away  they 
went. 

70 


THE    VALIANT   CHANTICLEER 

Then  the  cock  met  a  bear. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?  "  asked  the  bear. 

"  To  the  king's  pahice,"  crowed  the  cock. 

"  May  1  come  with  you  ?  "  said  the  bear. 

"  Sit  up  behind,"  cried  the  cock  ;  and  then  the 
bear  took  a  seat  in  the  ladle,  and  away  they  went. 

All  at  once  thev  came  to  a  lake. 

'*  Where  are  you  going  .?  "  asked  the  lake. 

"  To  the  king's  palace,"  crowed  the  cock. 

"  May  I  come  with  you  ?  "  said  the  lake. 

'*  Sit  up  behind,"  cried  the  cock  ;  and  then  the 
lake  began  to  heave,  so  that  the  one  billow  after  the 
other  washed  up  into  the  ladle,  and  soon  the  whole 
lake  was  in  it.  The  cock's  companions  got  a  little 
wet  about  the  feet,  but  there  was  no  help  for  that. 
The  cock  set  off  with  them,  and  so  they  came  to 
the  king's  palace.  The  cock  now  flew  up  on  the 
roof  of  the  palace  and  crowed  : 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  ! 

The  king  heard  this. 

"  That's  a  strange  cock  !  "  he  thought.  And  then  he 
gave  orders  that  his  men  should  catch  him,  and  all  of 
them  began  to  run  after  the  cock  and  call  him.  But 
when  they  got  so  near  to  him  that  they  could  almost 
catch  him,  he  flew  up  on  the  roof  again,  and  then 
he  crowed  : 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  " 

It  was  all  in  vain,  they  could  not  catch  him. 

"  I   suppose   you  must   have   her,   then,"   said  the 

71 


SWEDISH  FAIRY  TALES 

king,   with    a    laugh  ;    and    then  the    cock    allowed 
himself  to  be  caught  at  once. 

But  as  soon  as  the  king  had  got  him  he  was  sorry 
for  what  he  had  promised,  for  a  king's  word  is  a 
king's  word  ;  but  a  better  son-in-law  he  might  surely 
have  got — he  who  had  such  a  fair  and  beautiful 
daughter,  and  his  only  daughter  into  the  bargain. 
But  how  should  he  get  rid  of  him  ? 

"  If  I  let  him  into  the  goose-pen,  the  geese  are 
sure  to  finish  him  off,"  he  thought ;  and  so  he 
let  the  cock  in  among  the  geese.  They  began  to 
pinch  and  peck  at  him  with  their  beaks  and  to 
pluck  his  feathers  out,  but  just  then  he  crowed 
for  the  fox  : 

"  Cock-a-doodle-do  !     Foxie,  come  and  help  !  " 
And   the    fox   came  sneaking   along,   and  he   was 
not  slow  in  getting  in  among  the  geese,  and  there 
he  ravaged  about  in  such  a  way  that  they  were  all 
dead  in  less  than  no  time. 

The  cock  then  flew  up  on  the  roof,  and  crowed  : 
"The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  " 
"  Such  a  dreadful  cock  I  have  never  set  eyes  on  !  " 
thought  the  king.  "  Now  he  has  killed  all  my 
geese  !  How  shall  I  get  rid  of  him  ?  What  if  I  let 
him  in  among  my  cattle  ?  They'll  be  sure  to 
finish  him,"  he  thought,  and  so  he  let  him  into  the 
cow-shed.  The  king  had  a  large  herd  of  cattle,  and 
they  seized  the  cock  with  their  horns  and  tossed  him 
about  between  them  like  a  ball. 

72 


THE    VALIANT    CHANTICLEER 

But    the   cock    Hew   up    on    top   of  the    bull    and 
crowed  for  the  wolt  : 

"  Cock-a-doodle-do  !     Woliie,  come  and  help  !  " 
The  wolf  was    not   long  in    coming,  and    he   had 
such  a  feast  that  there  wasn't  a  single  beast  left  alive. 
The  cock  flew  up  on  the  roof  again,  and   then   he 
crowed  : 

"The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  " 
"  Has  any  one  seen  the  like  of  that  cock  ?  "  said 
the  king.  '*  Now  he  has  finished  all  my  geese  and 
all  my  cattle.  How  shall  I  get  rid  of  him  ^  What 
if  I  let  him  in  among  the  horses  ?  They'll  be  sure  to 
finish  him,"  he  thought  ;  and  so  he  let  the  cock  into 
the  stable. 

The  king  had  a  lot  of  horses,  and  they  began  to  rear 
and  kick  with  all  their  might,  so  that  the  cock  was 
knocked  about  from  one  to  the  other  like  a  wheel 
rolling  down  the  street,  and  he  soon  got  tired  of  that 
kind  of  knocking  about.  So  he  crowed  for  the  bear. 
''  Cock-a-doodle-do  !  Bruin,  come  and  help  !  " 
And  the  bear  was  not  long  in  coming,  and  he 
began  to  strike  and  tear,  till  there  was  not  one  of 
the  king's  horses  left. 

The   cock   then   flew   up   on    the  roof  again,   and 
crowed : 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  " 
*'  That's  the  worst  cock  I  ever   came   across,"  said 
the  king.     "  First  he  kills  all  my  geese   and  all  my 
cattle,  and  now  he  has  finished   my  horses   as   well. 

73 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

I  shall  be  quite  ruined.  But  now  I'll  put  him  on 
the  spit  and  roast  him  and  eat  him  myself,  and  it'll 
be  a  wonder  if  I  don't  get  rid  of  him  then."  That 
was  what  must  be  done  ;  and  so  they  took  the  cock 
and  put  him  on  the  spit,  and  the  kitchenmaids  made 
such  a  big  fire,  that  it  fizzled  all  round  him.  But 
the  cock  crowed   for  the  lake, 

"  Cock-a-doodle-do  !      Lakey,  come  and  help  !  " 

And  the  lake  came  rolling  in  and  put  out  the  fire. 
But  it  was  only  just  in  the  nick  of  time, — for  the 
cock  was  half  roasted.  But  as  they  could  not  get 
him  done  any  better,  he  would  have  to  do  as  he  was  ; 
and  so  they  carried  him  up  on  a  silver  dish  and 
placed  him  on  the  table.  The  king  was  so  angry 
that  he  swallowed  him  in  one  gulp. 

"  Now   I   suppose   I'm  rid   of  him,"  he  thought. 

But   had   anybody   heard    the   like  ? 

As  soon  as  the  cock  got  into  the  king's  stomach 
he  began  to  revive  again  and  to  crow  : 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  "  And  he 
tumbled  about  so  terribly  down  there  that  the  king 
could  not  keep  him  down,  and  so  had  to  vomit  him. 
But  no  sooner  had  the  cock  recovered  than  he  began 
to  flap  his  wings,  and  he  flew  up  and  perched  on 
the  top  of  the  king's  crown,  and  there  he  crowed  : 

"  The  king's  daughter  shall  be  mine  !  " 

The  king  was  in  despair  ;  he  did  not  know  what 
to  do,  and  flung  his  crown  away. 

'*  Well,  you  had  better  take  her  then,  you  bird  of 

74 


THE   COCK   TRIED   TO   COMFORT   THE    PRINCESS    AS   BEST    HE   COULD,    AND   SWEPT 
THE    TABLE   WITH    HIS  WINGS. 


THE    VALIANT    CHANTICLEER 


ill-omen,  and  half  the  kingdom  as  well  ;   only    leave 
me  in  peace  !  "  he  cried. 

The  cock  was  now  to  have  the  princess.  She 
cried  and  wept  bitterly,  for  you  can  easily  understand 
she  did  not  want  such  a  bridegroom.  She  was  not 
a  hen,  and  did  not  want  to  become  one. 

But  all  her  crying  and  her  wailings  were  of  no 
avail,  she  would  have  to  marry  the  cock  and  be  satis- 
fied with  him.  He  tried  to  comfort  her  as  best  he 
could,  and  swept  the  table  with  his  wings,  and 
breasted  and  plumed  himself  in  a  cock's  very  best 
manner  ;  but  she  w^ent  on  crying  and  weeping,  and 
as  he  was  not  able  to  console  her,  he  at  last  asked 
her  to  wring  his  neck.  No,  that  she  would  not  do, 
for  life  may  be  dear,  even  to  a  cock,  she  thought. 
But  he  begged  and  prayed  so  hard  that  at  last  she 
did  it,  and  the  next  moment  a  prince  stood  before  her, 
and  he  was  so  fine  and  handsome  as  to  beggar  all 
description  ;  and  yet  he  was  the  cock  !  There  was 
soon  an  end  to  the  crying  and  wailing,  and  things 
took  another  turn,  for  both  the  princess  and  the 
king  were  so  happy  that  no  one  can  believe  how 
happy  they  were. 

To  the  wedding  came  people  from  all  parts  of  the 
country,  and  the  man  and  his  wife  were  there  as 
well.  The  fox  and  the  wolf  and  the  bear  waited  at 
the  table,  and  the  lake  washed  up  the  dishes,  and 
altogether  it  was  the  grandest  wedding  I  have  ever 
been  to  in  all  my  days. 

77 


TWIGMUNTUS,     COWBELLIANTUS, 
PERCHNOSIUS 

Once  upon  a  time  there  was  a  king  who  was  so 
very  learned  that  no  parson  in  the  whole  world 
could  surpass  him  ;  in  fact,  he  was  so  learned  that 
ordinary  folks  could  hardly  understand  what  he  said, 
nor  could  he  understand  them  either.  But  in  order 
to  have  some  one  to  talk  with  he  procured  seven  wise 
professors,  who  were  not  quite  so  learned  as  himself, 
but  who  were  just  able  to  interpret  his  learned 
sayings,  so  that  people  could  apprehend  them,  and 
who  could  twist  and  turn  about  the  talk  of  ordinary 
folk  so  that  it  became  sufficiently  learned  and  com- 
plicated for  the  king  to  understand  it. 

The  king  had  no  son,  but  he  had  a  daughter,  and 
in  order  that  she  should  be  happily  married,  and 
the  country  governed  according  to  the  fundamental 
principles  of  his  learning,  he  issued  an  edict  that  he 
who  was  so  learned  as  to  put  the  king  and  his 
professors  to  silence  should  have  his  daughter  and 
half  the  kingdom  there  and  then.  But  any  one 
who  attempted  the  task  and  did  not  succeed,  should 

78 


TWIGMUNTUS,  COWBELLIANTUS,  ETC. 

lose  his   head  for  having   dared   to   exchange  words 
with   the  king. 

That  was  no  joke ;  but  the  princess  was  so  fair  and 
beautiful  that  it  was  no  joke  to  gaze  at  her  either. 
And  the  king  did  not  keep  her  caged  up,  for  any 
one  who  wished  could  see  her. 

There  came  princes  and  counts  and  barons  and 
parsons  and  doctors,  and  learned  persons  from  all 
quarters  of  the  world  ;  and  no  sooner  did  they  see 
the  princess  than  they  one  and  all  wanted  to  try 
their  luck.  But,  however  learned  they  were,  their 
learning  never  proved  sufficient,  and  every  one  of 
them  lost  his  head. 

Over  in  a  corner  of  the  kingdom  there  lived  a 
farmer,  who  had  a  son.  This  lad  was  not  stupid  ; 
he  was  quick  of  apprehension  and  sharp  witted,  and 
he  was  not   afraid  of  any  thing. 

When  the  king's  edict  came  to  this  out-of-the- 
way  place,  and  the  parson  had  read  it  from  the 
pulpit,  the  lad  wanted  to  try  his  luck.  "  He  who 
nothing  risks,  nothing  wins,"  thought  the  lad  ;  and 
so  he  went  to  the  parson  and  told  him  that  if  he 
would  give  him  lessons  in  the  evenings,  he  would 
work  for  the  parson  in  the  daytime,  but  he  wanted 
to  become  so  learned  that  he  could  try  a  bout  with 
the  king  and  his  professors. 

"  Whoever  means  to  compete  with  them  must  be 
able  to  do  something  more  than  munch  bread,"  said 
the  parson. 

79 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  That  may  be,"  said  the  lad  ;  "  but  Ell  try  my 
luck." 

The  parson  thought,  of  course,  that  he  was  mad  ; 
but  when  he  could  get  such  a  clever  hand  to  work 
for  him  only  for  his  keep,  he  thought  he  could  not 
very  well  say  no  ;  and  so  the  lad  got  what  he  wanted. 

He  worked  for  the  parson  in  the  daytime,  and  the 
parson  read  with  him  in  the  evening  ;  and  in  this  way 
they  went  on  for  some  time,  but  at  last  the  lad  grew 
tired  of  his  books. 

"  I  am  not  going  to  sit  here  and  read  and  grind 
away,  and  lose  what  few  wits  I  have,"  he  said  ;  "  and 
it  won't  be  of  much  help  either,  for  if  you  are  lucky 
things  will  come  right  of  themselves,  and  if  you  are 
not  lucky  you'll  never  make  a  silk  purse  out  of  a 
sow's  ear." 

And  with  this  he  pitched  the  books  on  the  shelf 
and  went  his  way. 

All  at  once  he  came  to  a  large  forest,  where  the 
trees  and  the  bushes  were  so  thick  that  it  was  with 
difficulty  he  could  get  along.  While  he  was  thus 
pushing  his  way  through,  he  began  wondering  what 
he  should  say  when  he  came  to  the  king's  palace,  and 
how  best  he  could  make  use  of  the  learning  he  had 
picked  up  from  the  parson.  All  of  a  sudden  the 
twig  of  a  tree  struck  him  across  his  mouth,  so  that 
his  teeth   rattled. 

"  That  is  Twigmuntus,"  he  said. 

A  little  while  after 'he  came  to  a  meadow,  where  a 

80 


TWIGMUNTUS,  COWBELLIANTUS,  ETC. 

cow    was    standing    bellowing    so    furiously    that     it 
almost  deafened  him. 

"That  is  Cowbelliantus,"  he  said. 

He  then  came  to  a  river  ;  but  as  there  was  neither 
bridge  nor  planks  across  it,  he  had  to  put  his  clothes 
on  his  head  and  swim  across. 

While  he  was  swimming  a  perch  came  and  bit 
him   on   the   nose. 

'*  That  is  Perchnosius,"  he  said. 

At  last  he  came  to  the  king's  palace,  where  things 
did  not  look  at  all  pleasant,  for  there  were  men's 
heads  stuck  on  long  stakes  round  about,  and  they 
grinned  so  horribly  that  they  were  enough  to 
frighten  any  one  out  of  his  wits.  But  the  lad  was 
not  easily  frightened. 

"  God's  peace  ! "  he  said,  and  raised  his  cap. 
'*  There  you  stick  and  grin  at  me  ;  but  who  knows 
if  I  may  not  be  keeping  you  company  before  the 
day  is  over,  and  be  grinning  with  you  at  others  ? 
But  if  I  happen  to  be  alive,  you  shall  not  stick 
there  any  longer  gaping  at  people,"  he  said. 

So  he  went  up  to  the  palace  and  knocked  at  the 
gate. 

The  guard  came  out  and  asked  what  he  wanted. 

"  I  have  come  to  try  my  luck  with  the  princess," 
said  the  lad. 

"  You  .?  "  said  the  guard,  "  well,  you're  a  likely 
one,  you  are  !  Have  you  lost  your  senses  .?  There 
have  been  princes  and  counts  and  barons  and  parsons 

8i  G 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

and  doctors  and  learned  persons  here,  and  all  of  them 
have  had  to  pay  with  their  heads  for  that  pleasure  ; 
and  yet  you  think  you'll  succeed  !  "  he  said. 

'*  I  should  say  it  is  no  concern  of  yours,"  said  the 
lad  ;  "just  open  the  gate,  and  you'll  see  one  who's 
not  afraid  of  anything." 

But  the  guard  would  not  let  him  in. 

"  Do  as  I  tell  you,"  said  the  lad,  "  or  there'll  be  a 
fine  to-do  !  " 

But  the   guard  would  not. 

The  lad  then  seized  him  by  the  collar  and  flung 
him  against  the  wall,  so  that  it  creaked  ;  and  then  he 
walked  straight  in  to  the  king,  who  sat  in  his  parlour 
with  all  his  seven  professors  about  him.  Their  faces 
were  long  and  thin,  and  they  looked  like  puny  sickly 
persons  about  to  die.  They  were  sitting  with  their 
heads  on  one  side  meditating  and  staring  at  the  floor. 

Then  one  of  them,  who  looked  up,  asked  the  lad  in 
ordinary  language  :  **  Who  are  you  ?  " 

"  A  suitor,"  said  the  lad. 

*'  Do  you  want  to  try  for  the  princess's  hand  ?  " 

"  Well,  that's  about  it  !  "  said  the  lad. 

"  Have  you  lost  your  wits  ?  There  have  been 
princes  and  counts  and  barons  and  parsons  and  doctors 
and  learned  persons  here,  and  all  of  them  have  gone 
headless  away ;  so  you  had  better  turn  about  and 
get  away  while  your  head  is  on  your  shoulders," 
he  said. 

"  Don't    trouble    yourself    on    that    account,    but 

82 


TWIGMUNTUS,  COWBELLIANTUS,  ETC. 

rather  think  of  the  head  on  your  own  shoulders,"  said 
the  lad.  "  You  look  after  yours,  and  I'll  take  care 
of  mine  !  So  just  begin,  and  let  me  hear  how  much 
wit  you  have  got,  for  I  don't  think  you  look  so  very 
clever,"  he  said. 

The  first  professor  then  began  a  long  harangue  of 
gibberish  ;  and  when  he  had  tinished  the  second  went 
on  ;  and  then  the  third  ;  and  in  this  way  they  con- 
tinued till  at  length  it  was  the  turn  of  the  seventh. 
The  lad  did  not  understand  a  single  word  of  it  all, 
but  he  didn't  lose  courage  for  all  that.  He  only 
nodded  his  approval  to  all  of  it. 

When  the  last  had  finished  his  harangue  he  asked  : 

'*  Can  you   reply   to    that  ?  " 

"That's  easy  enough,"  said  the  lad.  "Why,  when  I 
was  in  my  cradle  and  in  my  go-cart  I  could  twist  my 
mouth  about  and  prate  and  jabber  like  you,"  he  said. 
"  But  since  you  are  so  terriblv  learned,  I'll  put  a 
question  to  you,  and  that  shall  not    be   a   long  one  : 

"  Twigmuntus,  Cowbelliantus,  Perchnosius  .?  Can 
you  give  me  an  answer  to  that  ?  " 

And  now  you  should  have  seen  how  they  stretched 
their  necks  and  strained  their  ears.  They  put  on 
their  spectacles  and  began  to  look  into  their  books 
and   turn   over   the   leaves. 

But  while  they  were  searching  and  meditating,  the 
lad  put  his  hands  in  his  trouser  pockets,  and  looked  so 
frank  and  fearless  that  they  could  not  help  admiring 
him,    and    wondering    that   one  who  was  so  young 

83  G  2 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

could  be  so  learned  and  yet  look  just  like  other 
people. 

"  Well,  how  are  you  getting  on  ?  "  said  the  lad. 
"  Cannot  all  your  learning  help  you  to  open  your 
mouths,  so  that  I  can  have  an  answer  to  my  ques- 
tion .?  "  he  said. 

Then  they  began  to  ponder  and  meditate,  and  then 
they  glanced  at  the  ceiling,  and  then  they  stared  at 
the  walls,  and  then  they  fixed  their  eyes  upon  the 
floor.  But  they  could  not  give  him  any  answer,  nor 
could  the  king  himself,  although  he  was  much  more 
learned  than  all  the  others  together.  They  had  to 
give  it  up,  and  the  lad  got  the  princess  and  half  the 
kingdom.  This  he  ruled  in  his  own  way,  and  if  it 
did  not  fare  better,  it  did  not  fare  worse  for  him  than 
for  the  king  with  all  his  fundamental  principles. 


84 


'^^-^s. 


THE    LAD    AND    THE    FOX 


There  was  once  upon  a  time  a  little  lad,  who  was 
on  his  way  to  church,  and  when  he  came  to  a  clearing 
in  the  forest  he  caught  sight  of  a  fox,  who  was  lying 
on  the  top  of  a  big  stone  fast  asleep,  so  that  the  fox 
did  not  know  the  lad  had  seen  him. 

"  If  I  kill  that  fox,"  said  the  lad,  taking  a  heavy 
stone  in  his  fist,  "  and  sell  the  skin,  I  shall  get  money 
for  it,  and  with  that  money  I  shall  buy  some  rye, 
and  that  rye  I  shall  sow  in  father's  cornfield  at  home. 
When  the  people  who  are  on  their  way  to  church 
pass  by  my  field  of  rye  they'll  say  :  '  Oh,  what 
splendid  rye  that  lad  has  got  ! '     Then  I  shall  say  to 

85 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

them  :  '  I  say,  keep  away  from  my  rye  ! '  But 
they  won't  heed  me.  Then  I  shall  shout  to  them  : 
'  I  say,  keep  away  from  my  rye  ! '  But  still  they 
won't  take  any  notice  of  me.  Then  I  shall  scream 
with  all  my  might  :  '  Keep  away  from  my  rye  ! ' 
and  then  they'll  listen  to  me." 

But  the  lad  screamed  so  loudly  that  the  fox  woke 
up  and  made  off  at  once  for  the  forest,  so  that  the 
lad  did  not  even  get  as  much  as  a  handful  of  his 
hair. 

No  ;  it's  best  always  to  take  what  you  can  reach, 
for  of  undone  deeds  you  should  never  screech,  as  the 
saying  goes. 


86 


OLD  NICK  AND  THE  GIRL 

There  was  once  a  girl  who  was  so  mad  about 
dancing  that  she  nearly  went  out  of  her  mind  when- 
ever she  heard  a  fiddle  strike  up. 

She  was  a  very  clever  dancer,  and  a  smarter  girl 
to  whirl  round  in  a  dance  or  kick  her  heels  was  not 
easily  to  be  found,  although  she  only  had  shoes  made 
of  birch-bark,  and  knitted  leggings  on  her  feet.  She 
swept  past  at  such  a  rate  that  the  air  whistled  round 
her  like  a  humming  top.  She  might  have  whirled 
round  still  more  quickly  and  lightly,  of  course,  if  she 
had  had  leather  shoes.  But  how  was  she  to  get  them, 
when  she  had  no  money  to  pay  for  them  ?  For  she 
was  very  poor,  this  girl,  and  could  ill  afford  them. 

So  one  day,  when  the  fair  was  being  held  at 
Amberg  Heath,  whom  should  she  meet  but  Old 
Nick  !  He  was  going  to  see  the  fun  of  the  fair,  as 
you  may  guess,  for  all  sorts  of  tramps  and  vagabonds 
and  watch-dealers  and  rogues  go  there  ;  and  where 
such  gentry  are  to  be  found,  others  of  the  same 
feather  are  sure  to  flock  together. 

87 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

"  What  are  you  thinking  about  ?  "  asked  Old 
Nick,  who  knew   well  enough    how  matters  stood. 

"  I  am  wondering  how  I  shall  be  able  to  get  a 
pair  of  leather  shoes  to  dance  in,"  said  the  girl  ;  "  for 
I  haven't  any  money  to  pay  for  them,"  she  said. 

*'  Is  that  all  ?  We'll  soon  get  over  that,"  said  Old 
Nick,  and  produced  a  pair  of  leather  shoes,  which 
he  showed  her.     "  Do  you  like   these  ?  "  he  asked. 

The  girl  stood  staring  at  the  shoes.  She  could 
never  have  believed  that  there  were  such  fine, 
splendid  shoes,  for  they  were  not  common  ones 
sewn  with  pitched  thread,  but  real  German  shoes 
with  welted  soles,  and  looked  as  French  as  one 
could  wish. 

"  Is  there  a  spring  in  them  as  well  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Yes,  that  you  may  be  sure  of,"  said  Old  Nick. 
"  Do  you  want  them  ?  " 

Yes,  that  she  did  ;  there  could  be  no  doubt 
about  that,  and  so  they  began  bargaining  and 
higgling  about  the  payment,  till  at  last  they 
came  to  terms.  She  was  to  have  the  shoes  for  a 
whole  year  for  nothing,  if  only  she  would  dance 
in  his  interest,  and  afterwards  she  should  belong 
to   him. 

She  did  not  exactly  make  a  good  bargain,  but 
Old  Nick  is  not  a  person  one  can  bargain  with. 
But  there  was  to  be  such  a  spring  in  them  that  no 
human  being  would  be  able  to  swing  round  quicker 
in  a  dance  or  kick  higher  than  she  did  ;   and  if  they 


OLD    NICK    AND    THE   GIRL 

did  not  satisfy  her,  he  would  take  them  back  for 
nothing,   and   she  should   be  free. 

With   this  they  parted. 

And  now  the  girl  seemed  to  wake  up  thoroughly. 
She  thought  of  nothing  else  but  going  to  dances, 
wherever  they  might  be,  night  after  night.  Well, 
she  danced  and  danced,  and  before  she  knew  it  the 
year  came  to  an  end,  and  Old  Nick  came  and  asked 
for  his  due. 

*'  They  were  a  rubbishy  pair  of  shoes  you  gave 
me,"  said  the  girl  ;  "  there  was  no  spring  at  all  in 
them,"  she  said. 

"  Wasn't  there  any  spring  in  the  shoes  ?  That's 
very  strange,"  said  Old  Nick. 

"  No,  there  wasn't  !  "  said  the  girl.  *'  Why,  my 
bark  shoes  are  far  better,  and  I  can  get  on  much 
faster  in  them  than  in  these  wretched  things." 

"  You  twist  about  as  if  you  were  dancing,"  said 
Old  Nick  ;  "  but  now  I  think  you  will  have  to  dance 
away  with  me  after  all." 

"  Well,  if  you  don't  believe  my  words,  I  suppose 
you'll  believe  your  eyes,"  she  said.  "  Put  on  these 
grand  shoes  of  yours,  and  try  them  yourself,"  she 
said,  "  and  Til  put  on  my  bark  shoes,  and  then  we'll 
have  a  race,  so  that  you  can  see  what  they  are  good 
for,"  she  said. 

Well,  that  was  reasonable  enough,  he  thought, 
and,  no  doubt,  he  felt  there  was  very  little  danger  in 
trying    it.      So    they   agreed    to   race   to   the  end    of 

89 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

Lake  Fryken  and  back,  one  on  each  side  of  the  lake, 
which,  as  you  know,  is  a  very  long  one  indeed.  If 
she  came  in  first  she  was  to  be  free,  but  if  she  came 
in  last  she  was  to  belong  to  him. 

But  the  girl  had  to  run  home  first  of  all,  for  she 
had  a  roll  of  cloth  for  the  parson,  which  she  must 
deliver  before  she  tried  her  speed  with  Old  Nick. 
Very  well,  that  she  might,  for  he  went  in  fear  of  the 
parson  ;  but  the  race  should  take  place  on  the  third 
day  afterwards. 

Now,  as  bad  luck  would  have  it  for  Old  Nick,  it 
so  happened  that  the  girl  had  a  sister,  who  was  so 
like  her  that  it  was  impossible  to  know  one  from  the 
other,  for  they  were  twins,' the  two  girls. 

But  the  sister  was  not  mad  about  dancing,  so 
Old  Nick  had  not  got  scent  of  her.  The  girl  now 
asked  her  sister  to  place  herself  at  Frykstad,  the 
south  end  of  the  lake,  and  she  herself  took  up  her 
position  at  Fryksend,  the  north  end  of  it. 

She  had  the  bark  shoes  on,  and  Old  Nick  the 
leather  ones  ;  and  so  they  set  off,  each  on  their  side  or 
the  lake.  The  girl  did  not  run  very  far,  for  she 
knew  well  enough  how  little  running  she  need  do  ; 
but  Old  Nick  set  off  at  full  speed,  much  faster  than 
one  can  ride  on  the  railway. 

But  when  he  came  to  Frykstad  he  found  the  girl 
already  there  ;  and  when  he  came  back  to  Fryksend 
there  she  was  too. 

"  Well,  you  see  now  .?  "  said  the  girl. 

90 


OLD   NICK   AND   THE   GIRL 

"  Of  course  I  see,"  said  Old  Nick,  but  he  was  not 
the  man  to  give  in  at  once.  "  One  time  is  no  time, 
that  you  know,"  he  said. 

"  Well,  let's  have  another  try,"  said  the  girl. 

Yes,  that  he  would,  for  the  soles  of  his  shoes  were 
almost  worn  out,  and  then  he  knew  what  state  the 
bark  shoes  would  be  in. 

They  set  off  for  the  second  time,  and  Old  Nick 
ran  so  fast  that  the  air  whistled  round  the  corners  of 
the  houses  in  Sanne  and  Emtervik  parishes  ;  but 
when  he  came  to  Frykstad,  the  girl  was  already 
there,  and  when  he  got  back  to  Fryksend,  she  was 
there  before  him  this  time  also. 

"  Can  vou  see  now  who  comes  in  first  ?  "  she  said. 

"  Yes,  of  course  I  can,"  said  Old  Nick,  and  began 
to  dry  the  perspiration  off  his  face,  thinking  all  the 
time  what  a  wonderful  runner  that  girl  must  be. 
"  But  you  know,"  he  said,  "  twice  is  hardly  half  a 
time  !     It's  the  third  time  that  counts." 

"  Let's  have  another  try,  then,"  said  the  girl. 

Yes,  that  he  would,  for  Old  Nick  is  very  sly,  you 
know,  for  when  the  leather  shoes  were  so  torn  to 
pieces  that  his  feet  were  bleeding,  he  knew  well 
enough  what  state  the  bark  shoes  would  be  in. 

And  so  they  set  off  again.  Old  Nick  went  at  a 
terrible  speed  ;  it  was  just  like  a  regular  north-wester 
rushing  past,  for  now  he  was  furious.  He  rushed 
onwards,  so  that  the  roofs  were  swept  away  and  the 
fences    creaked    and    groaned    all    the    way   through 

93 


SWEDISH    FAIRY  TALES 

Sonne  and  Emtervik  parishes.  But  when  he  got  to 
Frykstad  the  girl  was  there,  and  when  he  got  back 
to  Fryksend  then  she  was  there  too. 

His  feet  were  now  in  such  a  pHght  that  the  flesh 
hung  in    pieces   from   them,   and  he   was  so  out  of 


OLD   NICK   HAD    NOW   TO   ACKNOWLEDGE    HIMSELF   BEATEN. 


breath,  and  groaned  so  hard,  that  the  sound  echoed 
in  the  mountains.  The  girl  almost  pitied  the  old 
creature,  disgusting  as  he  was. 

"  Do  you  see,  now,"  she  said,  "  that  there's  a  better 
spring  in  my  bark  shoes  than  in  your  leather  ones  .? 

94 


OLD    NICK   AND   THE   GIRL 

There's  notliiiiL!;  left  of  yours,  while  mine  will  hold 
out  for  another  run,  if  you  would  like  to  try,"  she 
said. 

No,  Old  Nick  had  now  to  acknowledge  himself 
beaten,  and  so  she  was  free. 

"  I've  never  seen  the  like  of  such  a  woman,"  he 
said  ;  *'  but  if  you  go  on  dancing  and  jumping  about 
like  that  all  your  days  we  are  sure  to  meet  once 
more,"  he  said. 

"  Oh,  no  !  "  said  the  girl.  And  since  then  she  has 
never  danced  again,  for  it  is  not  every  time  that  you 
can  succeed  in  getting  away  from  Old  Nick. 


95 


THE    STONE    STATUE 

There  were  once  two  men  who  were  walking 
across  a  churchyard — and  there  was  nothing  remark- 
able about  that  ;  but  when  one  of  them  lifted  his 
cap,  as  one  should  do  in  such  a  place,  and  said  : 
"  God's  peace  to  all  who  rest  here  !  "  then  the  other 
said  :  "  They  lie  as  they  have  made  their  bed,  and 
they  get  what  they  deserve  !  "  It  was  very  wicked  to 
talk  in  that  way  ;  and  no  sooner  had  he  spoken  these 
words  than  he  was  changed  into  a  stone  statue,  and 
thus  he  stood  for  many,  many  years.  The  one 
parson  after  the  other  came  and  prayed  and  chanted 
over  him,  but  no  one  was  able  to  exorcise  the  soul 
out  of  the  petrified  body. 

It  so  happened  that  a  new  parson  came  to  the 
parish,  and  he  was  much  more  learned  than  all  the 
others.  He  was  a  model  parson  in  every  respect  ; 
but  he  was  somewhat  hasty,  and  his  wife  was  not 
one  to  be  trifled  with  either.  When  he  saw  the 
stone  statue  and  heard  why  it  stood  there,  he  wanted 
also  to  try  to  get  its  soul  to  rest  in  peace.  He  had 
the  statue  carried  into  his  study,  so  that  he  could  pray 

96 


THE   STONE   STATUE 

over  it  every  day,  both  in  the  morning  and  in  the 
evening  and  at  all  hours  of  the  day,  which  he  did. 
But  the  first  time  he  read  the  evening  prayers  and 
came  to  the  w^ords  :  "God  banish  everything  that  is 
evil  from  this  house  !  "  he  heard  something  like  a 
titter  over  in  the  corner  where  the  statue  stood,  but 
he  could  not  make  out  from  whom  it  proceeded. 
Next  evening  when  he  came  to  these  words  the 
same  thing  happened,  but  he  became  none  the  wiser 
this  time  either. 

The  third  evening  he  again  heard  the  same  titter- 
ing ;  but  this  time  he  kept  a  better  watch,  and  then 
he  discovered  it  was  the  statue  over  in  the  corner 
that  had  tittered. 

"  Can  you  laugh  ?  "  said  the  parson.  "  If  so,  I 
suppose  you  can  tell  me  what  you  are  laughing  at  ?  " 

Yes,  that  the  statue  could. 

"  You  see,  reverend  father,"  said  the  statue,  "  you 
are  wonderfully  learned  in  all  sorts  of  divine  teach- 
ings, and  you  live,  no  doubt,  according  to  what  you 
teach  ;  but  you  quarrel  a  little  too  much  with  your 
wife,  and  therefore  all  the  house  swarms  with  little 
imps  during  the  day.  When  you  read  the  evening 
prayers  and  come  to  the  words  :  '  God  banish  every 
thing  that  is  evil  from  this  house  ! '  they  have  to  take 
themselves  off ;  and  there  is  one  among  them,  a 
little  fellow  who  limps  and  who  tosses  his  body 
about  in  such  a  funny  way  when  he  trudges  along, 
that  one  cannot  help  laughing  at  him.      But  although 

97  " 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

they  take  to  flight  when  you  read  the  prayers,  it 
is  not  long  before  they  are  back  again  ;  and  as  soon 
as  you  and  your  wife  begin  to  quarrel  this  limping 
little  rascal  comes  hobbling  in,  and  then  all  the  other 
little  devils  come  prowling  after  him,  one  after  the 
other." 

Those  words  made  the  parson's  heart  ache,  for 
when   stones   begin   to   talk   it  is   well  to   listen. 

And  this  he  did.  He  became  more  forbearing  to 
his  wife,  and  as  she  herself  was  not  particularly  fond 
of  these  crawling  little  things,  whom  she  could  not 
see,  but  who  swarmed  around  her,  she  also  tried,  as 
well  as  she  could,  to  control  her  temper.  And  as 
both  of  them  were  now  more  friendly  to  one  another 
and  more  inclined  to  give  way  to  each  other,  they 
began  little  by  little  to  agree  and  to  get  on  well 
together.  And  after  a  while  the  statue  was  not 
heard  to  say  anything  either  ;  and  some  little  time 
afterwards  the  parson  asked  it  if  it  now  saw  any 
signs  ot  the  little  hobbling  imp  and  his  companions. 

"  Well,  I  have  seen  him  holding  the  door  ajar  and 
peeping  in,  but  he  has  not  ventured  across  the 
threshold,"  said  the  statue  ;  "  but  now  I  think  he 
has  become  tired  of  it,  for  he  has  not  been  here  for 
many  days,  and  now  I  only  see  God's  angels  around 
you." 

The  parson  rejoiced  at  hearing  these  words,  and 
thanked  God  for  having  put  an  end  to  all  their 
dissensions. 

98 


RAf? 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


THE   STONE   STATUE 

"  But  how  Is  it  with  yourself  now  ?  "  he  asked 
the  statue. 

''  Well,  I  shall  also  find  peace  now,"  said  the 
statue  ;  "  for  now  I  have  done  a  good  deed,  and  I 
am   only  waiting  for  the  last  prayer." 

And  it  was  not  long  before  it  came.  The  parson 
read  the  best  prayer  he  knew,  and  when  he  had 
finished  the  statue  became  flesh  and  blood  again, 
but  he  drew  his  last  breath  at  the  same  moment. 
The  parson  put  him  in  a  coffin  and  gave  him  a 
respectable  burial,  and  in  this  way  they  both  bene- 
fited. 


lOI 


THE    ARTFUL    LAD 

There  were  once  two  farmers  whose  farms  lay 
side  by  side  in  the  same  parish.  Their  land  was  of 
the  same  size  and  equally  taxed,  so  that  by  rights 
both  the  farmers  ought  to  have  been  equally  well 
off.  But  they  were  not ;  for  the  one  was  rich,  and 
the  other  was  only  just  able  to  keep  body  and  soul 
together.  You  may  think  this  was  strange,  since 
the  one  was  just  as  industrious  as  the  other;  but  it 
was  not  so  very  strange  after  all,  for  the  rich  farmer 
had  a  servant  lad  to  help  him — and  a  very  clever  lad 
he  was,  while  the  other  had  to  do  all  the  work 
himself,  and  did  not  even  get  any  help  from  his 
wife,  for  she  suffered  so  much  from  internal  com- 
plaints, she  said,  that  she  was  unable  to  do  any  work 
in  the  fields.  Nor  did  she  do  much  indoor  work,  at 
which  she  had  to  sit  quiet  ;  but  spin  and  wind  yarn, 
and  run  about  from  one  room  to  the  other,  that  she 
could  do.  And  as  for  her  complaint,  it  could  not 
be  as  bad  as  she  pretended,  for  she  did  not  look 
either  ill  or  ailing.  No,  on  the  contrary  she  was 
stout   and   trim,  and  red   in    the  face   like  a  peony  ; 

I02 


THE  ARTFUL  LAD 

and  although  she  was  short  and  stout,  she  was 
broad  both  across  her  shoulders  and  hips,  so  that  no 
one  could  find  anything  amiss  with  her.  But  she 
was  one  of  those  who  will  steal  away  from  work  and 
idle  her  time  away  ;  and  that  was  about  all  that  ailed 
her.  And  she  had  the  habit  of  hiding  away  all  that 
her  husband  brought  home  with  him  in  his  ox-cart, 
and  so  you  may  guess  things  could  not  last  very 
long.  The  farmer  was  greatly  to  be  pitied,  although 
no  one  thought  of  pitying  him  ;  for  if  only  he  had 
given  his  wife  a  beating  now  and  then  it  would 
have  been  all  the  better  for  him.  But  this  he 
neglected  to  do,  and  so  he  had  to  suffer  for  it  ; 
there  was  no  help  for  it. 

So  one  Sunday  morning,  when  his  wife  was  out 
gallivanting  about,  as  was  her  custom  early  and  late, 
the  farmer  was  sitting  alone  in  his  parlour,  and  a 
strange  lad  happened  to  come  in. 

^  Good  evening,  master  !  "  said  the  lad. 

"  Good   evening  !  "   said   the  farmer. 

"  Do  you  want  a  servant  lad,  master  ?  " 

"  A  servant  lad  ?  God  help  me,"  said  the  farmer, 
"  how  can  I  afford  that  ?  I  can  scarcely  manage  to 
keep  and  feed  myself,  worse  luck  !  " 

"  Is  that  so  .?  "  said  the  lad.  "  But  that's  just  the 
reason  why  you  want  some  one  to  help  you." 

"You  talk  as  if  you  hadn't  any  sense,"  said  the  farmer. 
"  If  two  mouths  can  empty  a  dish,  does  one  get  any 
the  more  when  a   hungry   body   stands    by  staring   at 

103 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

one  ?  And  if  the  stuff  for  one's  breeches  is  not  enough 
for  two  legs,  is  it  likely  to  be  sufficient  for  four  ?  " 

"  Of  course,"  said  the  lad,  "  if  only  you  use  your 
wits  ;  for  if  you  use  them,  you  need  not  be  without 
either  bread  or  breeches,  that's  certain,  and  that  you 
may  depend  upon.  And  I'll  take  care  to  manage 
things,  and  to  stretch  the  stuff  for  the  breeches,  so 
that  it  will  be  sufficient  both  for  you  and  for 
me — that's  to  say,  if  the  missis  does  not  wear  the 
breeches,"  he  said. 

"  You  have  a  bold  tongue,  my  lad,"  said  the 
farmer  ;  "  but  it's  one  thing  to  boast  and  brag,  and 
another  to  work  and  drag  ;  and  braggarts  are 
generally  the  greatest  sluggards, — have  you  heard 
that  ?  " 

"Yes,  I  have.  I  have  heard  that  and  a  good  deal 
more,"  said  the  lad.  "  But  that's  neither  here  nor 
there.  I  like  this  place,  and  here  I'll  remain,  and 
as  for  wages  we  are  sure  to  agree  about  them.  I 
don't  want  to  take  anything  from  you  till  I've 
earned  it." 

"  How  you  do  talk  !  "  said  the  farmer.  *'  You  talk 
and  you  talk  till  my  ears  tingle,  but  that's  an  easy 
matter,  and  big  words  often  lead  to  a  big  fall  ;  but  if 
you  can  manage  to  get  along  on  scanty  fare,  there 
will   not   be   much   risk  about   it,"   he   said. 

"  Well,  you  take  the  risk,  master,  and  you'll  not 
regret  it,"  said  the  lad.  "  For  I  am  the  lad  who's 
not  afraid   of  anything." 

104 


THE   ARTFUL   LAD 

The  farmer  began  to  scratch  his  head.  He  liked 
the  lad,  for  you  must  know  he  was  a  big,  strong 
tellow,  and  if  he  were  only  half  as  strong  as  he 
looked,  he  would  still  be  one  of  the  strongest  in  the 
parish.  But  it  would  require  more  than  water-gruel 
to  feed  such  a  fellow  properly.  What  should  he  feed 
him  on  ?  And  his  wife  was  not  at  home  either. 
What  would  she  sav  when  she  found  she  had  such 
a  big  eater  in  the  house  .?  What  should  they  give 
him  to  eat  .? 

"  Well,"  said  the  boy,  who  began  to  be  impatient, 
"  what's  your   answer  ?  " 

"  Well,  that's  just  what  I  am  thinking  about,"  said 
the  farmer. 

"  But  that's  of  little  good  to  me,"  said  the  lad. 
"  Listen  to  me  !  Don't  sit  pondering  and  pondering, 
or  it'll  fare  with  you  as  with  the  parson  who  walked 
up  and  down  the  vestry  pondering  upon  his  first 
sermon  till  all  the  people  had  left  the  church.  No, 
that  won't  do  !  Quick  thoughts  belong  to  a  quick 
head,  so  don't  make  yourself  more  stupid  than  you 
are  !      Here's   my   hand  !  "  he  said. 

Well,  the  farmer  had  to  hold  out  his  hand  too, 
which  the  lad  squeezed  so  hard  that  the  farmer 
yelled  ;  and  that  was  the  whole  contract.  But  what 
was  done  was  done  ;  and  the  wife  might  think  what 
she  liked,  for  the  lad  went  to  his  work  at  once, 
he  did. 

All   at    once    the    wife   came   rushing   in. 

105 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

"  Good  evening  !  Glad  to  see  you  back  !  "  said  the 
farmer. 

"  Good  evening,  husband  !  "  said  the  w^ife.  "  How 
have  you  been  amusing  yourself  while  I  have  been 
out  ?  "  she  said,  in  an  insinuating  voice  and  with  a 
mild  look  in  her  eyes. 

"  Well,  I've  taken  a  servant  lad !  "  said  the 
farmer. 

"  Servant  lad  ?  "  said  the  wife.  '*  Have  you  gone 
clean  out  of  your  senses  ?  Taken  a  servant  lad,  you 
say  .?  " 

'*  Yes,  just  so  !  "  said  the  farmer. 

"  Bless  me  !  "  said  the  woman,  clasping  her  hands 
in  surprise.  "  Has  any  one  ever  heard  the  like  ? 
What  are  we  going  to  pay  him  and  feed  him  with, 
I   should  like   to   know  ?  " 

"  His  wages  will  be  my  affair,  and  the  feeding 
yours,"  said  the  farmer. 

"  I   pity  him,   poor  fellow,"  said  the  wife. 

"  You  needn't  pity  me  at  all,"  said  the  lad, 
"  for  I'm  the  sort  of  lad  that  isn't  afraid.  How  do 
you  do,  mother  .?  We  shall  be  the  best  of  friends 
and  get  on  well  together,"  he  said. 

The  wife  had  to  shake  hands  with  him  ;  and  when 
she  looked  a  little  closer  at  him,  she  saw  he  was  a 
fine  fellow,  who  had  his  wits  about  him.  '  That 
fellow  is  not  to  be  trifled  with,'  she  thought,  but 
she  did  not  say  a  word.  And  the  lad  did  not  speak 
a  word  either.      He   only  stared    at  her,  as  she  sat  by 

io6 


THE   ARTFUL   LAD 

the  hearth,  looking  as  fat  and  round  in  the  face  as  a 
pancake  ;  and  then  he  looked  at  the  farmer  and  saw 
how  thin  and  Lraunt  and  sallow  he  was.  "  What  a 
fiend  of  a  woman  !  She  must  eat  something  better 
than  water-gruel,"  thought  the  lad. 

On  the  following  Monday  the  farmer  and  the  lad 
set  out  early  in  the  morning  to  the  forest  to  cut  trees 
for  hurdles.  When  they  got  there,  the  lad  remem- 
bered that  he  had  forgotten  his  axe.  So  he  had  to 
run  home  again.  He  went  into  the  parlour  and  found 
that  his  mistress  was  out,  but  there  was  a  cloth  on 
the  table,  and  he  could  see  she  had  not  put  it  there  to 
be  bleached  by  the  sun,  for  there  was  bread  and 
butter  and  cheese  and  even  brandy  on  the  table. 
Had  any  one  ever  seen  such  a  woman  ?  That 
was  quite  another  sort  of  breakfast  to  the  water- 
gruel  and  bread-crumbs  she  gave  her  husband. 

"  There's  something  wrong  in  this  house,"  he 
thought,  "  but  take  your  time  and  you'll  see."  And 
so  he  crept  into  the  settle-bed,  and  shut  down  the  lid 
over  him,  and  then  he  cut  a  little  peep-hole  in  the 
side  of  the   bed. 

All  at  once  the  woman  came  hurrying  in,  bringing 
her  neighbour  with  her.  She  asked  him  to  sit  down 
and  make  himself  at  home,  which  he  lost  no  time  in 
doing. 

"  I  heard  you  were  going  to  the  forest  to-day,  and 
so  I  thought  you  would  like  a  tit-bit  and  a  dram," 
she   said,  and   made   herself  as  caressing  and  pleasant 

107 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

as  a  westerly  breeze  on  a  midsummer  night.  Her 
guest  needed  no  persuasion,  and  it  wasn't  necessary 
to  ask  him  twice.  He  ate  and  drank  and  helped 
himself  to  one  dram  after  another.  The  woman 
was  not  backward  either.  She  drank  a  glass  with 
him,  and  chattered  away  and  made  herself  as  pleasant 
as  she  could.  In  the  meantime  the  lad  lay  inside  the 
settle-bed,  chewing  a  bit  of  straw  and  peeping 
through  the  hole  and  listening  all  the  while. 

When  the  neighbour  had  finished  his  breakfast, 
he  had  eaten  so  much  that  he  had  to  loosen  the  strap 
of  his  leathern  apron,  and  then  he  got  ready  to   go. 

"Just  wait  a  bit,"  said  the  woman.  "Where  will 
you  be  working  to-day  .?  " 

"  I  shall  be  in  the  forest  close  to  where  your 
people  are  cutting,"  he  said. 

"  Will  you  be  alone  ?  "  she  asked. 

Yes,  that  he  would,  he  said,  for  his  lad  had  gone 
to  the   mill. 

"  If  you  will  mark  the  trees  and  drop  branches  in 
the  path,  I'll  come  and  bring  you  some  dinner," 
she  said. 

"  Thank  you,"  said  the  neighbour  as  he  went  out  ; 
and  so  the  woman  went  into  the  kitchen. 

Then  the  lad  jumped  out  of  the  settle-bed  and 
made  his  way  back  to  the  forest. 

Well,  the  neighbour  did  as  the  woman  had  told 
him,  but  as  he  went  through  the  forest  and  lopped 
off  branches,   the    lad,  who    was  following   behind, 

io8 


THE    ARTFUL    LAD 

picked  them  up  and  marked  the  patli  leading  to  the 
place  where   his  master  was  working. 

He  thought  he  had  managed  things  very  well. 

In  the  meantime  his  master  had  been  hewing 
away  till  the  splinters  flew,  and  swore  because  the 
lad  did  not  come  back. 

*'  How  stupid  I  was !  What  did  I  want  with  a 
lazy-bones  like  that,"  he  thought.  "  He  can  boast 
and  brag,  but  he  is  not  so  smart  on  his  legs  as  with 
his  tongue,  that  I  can  see;  and  if  he  goes  on  like  this 
the  first  day,   what  will  the  end  be  .?  " 

Just  then  the  lad  came  back.  He  had  lost  his 
way  in  the  forest,  he  said,  and  he  had  had  to  turn 
"j^-^  his  jacket  three  times  ^  before  he  got  on  the  right 
path. 

"  With  the  lazy  ox  the  Huldre  drives  best,"  the 
farmer  said  ;  "  and  I  should  like  to  know  whether 
you  belong  to  her  people  or  mine,"  he  said,  and  was 
very  angry. 

"  Bide  your  time,  and  you'll  see,"  said  the  lad,  and 
set  to  w^ork  with  a  will. 

He  cut  away  till  the  forest  thundered  and  rang 
with  his  blows,  so  that  in  a  short  time  he  had  felled 
more  trees   than   the  farmer. 

"Will  that  do?"  he  said. 

"  It  will,"  said  the  farmer. 

^  Any  one  led  astray  by  the  Huldre  (the  fairy  of  the  wood  of  the 
North)  must,  according  to  popular  belief,  turn  his  jacket  inside  out 
three  times  before  he  can   find  his  way. 

109 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

The  lad  then  put  down  the  axe  and  began  to  look 
round. 

"  What  are  you  staring  after  ?  "  said  the  farmer. 

"  I  can  see  by  the  sun  that  it's  dinner-time,"  said 
the  lad ;  "  and  I  am  looking  for  my  mistress,  for  I 
think  it's  about  time  that  she  ought  to  be  here  with 
our  dinner." 

"  Is  that  what  you  are  staring  after  ? "  said  the 
farmer.  "  If  so,  you'll  be  staring  till  your  eyes  start 
out  of  your  head,  for  mother  said  she  hadn't  got 
anything  for  us  ;  so  we  shall  have  to  cut  and  hew 
as  long  as  we  are  able,  and  even  when  v^^e  get  home 
I  don't  think  we  shall  be  able  to  scrape  much 
together." 

"  Bless  me  !  "  said  the  lad,  '*  we  mustn't  think  it'll 
be  as  bad  as  that !  Oh  no,  the  mistress  will  be 
coming,  you'll  see,  and  you  may  depend  she'll  give 
us  a  good  meal." 

"  Well,  believe  it  if  you  like,"  said  the  farmer. 
"  But  if  you  can  manage  with  that  sort  of  food 
till  this  evening  you'll  not  be  difficult  to  keep,"  he 
said. 

And  with  this  he  tightened  the  leather  apron 
round  his  waist  and  began  to  fell  trees  again. 

"  Look  there,  master !  "  said  the  lad. 

The  farmer  did  stare,  you  may  guess,  for  he  saw 
his  wife  stealing  along  between  the  bushes  with  a 
big  bag   of  food  on   her  arm. 

She  did  not  take  her  eyes  off  the  ground,  as  she 

I  lO 


THE   ARTFUL    LAD 

was  looking  for  the  branches,  and  she  didn't  know 
where  she  was  till  she  was  close  up  to  her  husband. 

"  Well,  mother  !  "  said   the  farmer. 

His  wife  gave  a  start. 

"  Good   gracious,   is   that   you  ^  "   she  said. 

"  Of  course  it's  me,"  said  the  farmer,  and  laughed. 
"  Surely  you  ought  to  know  that  when  you  come 
here  with  the  dinner.  But  sit  down,  and  let  me  see 
what  you  have  been  able  to  scrape  together  for  us." 

He  then  took  the  bag  and  began  to  see  what  she 
had  brought. 

There  was  butter  and  cheese  and  there  was  pease 
pudding.  "  Ey,  hey  !  "  said  the  farmer,  smacking  his 
lips.  And  there  was  swee*-  cheese  and  cheese  cakes, 
too. 

"  I  can  hardly  believe  my  eyes  !  Why,  this'll  be 
quite  a  grand  feast,  mother !  "  said  he.  He  then 
found  a  little  bottle.  What  could  there  be  in  that 
bottle  ?  He  took  out  the  cork.  It  was  brandy. 
He  became  so  pleased  that  he  gave  his  wife  a  dig 
in  the  ribs,  so  that  she  went  sprawling  along  the 
ground. 

"  I  say,  mother,"  he  cried,  "  where  have  you  got 
all  these  good  things  from  ^  You  haven't  stolen 
them,  I  hope  ?  " 

"  Oh,  they  are  some  trifles  I  have  been  saving  up," 
she  said,  "  and  I  thought  they  would  just  do  to-day, 
since  it  is  the  first  dinner  we  give  our  new  lad,"  she 
said  ;   but  most  likely  she  wished  both  the  lad  and 

1 1 1 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

her  husband  as  far  away  as  possible,  and  a  little  bit 
farther,  as  you  may  guess,  for  it  was  their  neighbour 
she  was  looking  for,  and  he,  poor  fellow,  would  not 
even  be  able  to  get  a  sniff  of  the  good  things. 

But  she  was  a  cunning  woman,  and  that  kind  of 
woman  always  finds   a  way  out  of  difficulties. 

"  I  say,  husband,'"  she  said,  "  our  neighbour  is  in 
the  forest  too  to-day,  and  we  have  never  offered  him 
any  hospitality.  Won't  you  ask  him  to  come  here 
and  have  something  ?  " 

The  farmer  was  not  particularly  anxious  to  get 
any  help,  for  there  was  not  overmuch  of  food  in 
the  bag,  and  he  and  the  lad  could  easily  manage 
what  there  was,  he  thought  ;  but  he  was  not  mean, 
nor  did   he  want  to   go   against   his   wife   either. 

"  Run  and  ask  our  neighbour,  then,"  he  said  to 
the  lad ;  and  off  went  the  lad,  but  first  he  took  a 
large  piece  of  cheese  with  him.  He  would  eat  that 
on  the  way,  he  said,  for  the  water-gruel  and  bread- 
crumbs which  he  had  had  for  breakfast  had  dis- 
appeared long  ago,  so  he  was  very  hungry,  he  said. 
But  he  broke  the  cheese  in  pieces  instead,  and 
dropped  them  on  the  path  as  he  went  along. 

And  so  he  came  to  where  the  neighbour  was. 

"  I  say,  mister  !  "  said  the  lad.  "  You'll  have  to 
be  on  the  look  out,  for  my  master  has  discovered 
that  miy  mistress  asks  you  to  our  house  when  he  is 
away,  so   now   there'll   be   a  fine   kettle   of  fish." 

And  then   he   ran   back  to  his  master. 

I  12 


THE   ARTFUL    LAD 

"  Master  !  "  he  cried.  "  For  God's  sake,  master, 
make  haste  and  take  the  axe  with  you.  Our  neigh- 
bour has  felled  a  big  tree,  which  has  flillen  right 
across  him." 

"  Dear,  dear  !  What  a  misfortune  !  "  cried  the 
farmer ;  and  set  off  running  with  the  axe  in  his 
hand. 

When  the  neighbour  caught  sight  of  him  running 
towards  him  in  this  way  he  remembered  what  the 
lad  had  said,  and  took  to  his  heels  as  fast  as  he  could. 
The  farmer  stared  after  him  in  surprise  ;  at  the  same 
time  he  was  glad  to  see  he  was  unhurt.  *'  Wait  a 
bit !  "  he  cried.  "  Wait  a  bit,  do  you  hear  ?  I  have 
got  something  nice  for  you  over  here." 

Something  nice  .?  No,  thank  you  ;  he  was  much 
obliged,  but  he  thought  it  was  best  to  keep  away,  for 
that  kind  of  treat  he  could  do  without.  He  took  to 
running  still  faster  ;  he  never  said  a  word — he  only 
ran. 

'*  I  should  say  he  has  gone  mad,"  said  the  farmer  ; 
"  for  as  a  rule  he  does  not  want  much  pressing.  But 
to  run  the  flesh  off  your  bones  to  get  people  to  eat 
up  your  food  when  you're  hungry,  why,  only  a  fool 
would  do  that,"  he  said,  and  so  he  went  back. 

But  then  he  saw  the  pieces  of  cheese  which  the 
lad  had  dropped  along  the  path. 

"  What  a  careless -boy  !  "  he  thought  ;  and  began 
to  pick  up  the  pieces  as  he  went  along. 

In   the   meanwhile   the  lad  was   sitting  beside  his 

113  I 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

mistress,  eating  and  drinking  and  gorging  himself 
from  the  bag. 

"  What's  father  picking  up  over  there  ?  "  said  the 
woman. 

"  Pebbles,"  said  the  lad. 

'*  Pebbles  ? "  said  the  woman.  "  What  is  he 
going  to  do  with  them  ?  " 

*'  How  should  I  know  ?  "  said  the  lad.  "  But  you 
had  better  take  care,  mistress,  for  my  master  knows 
how  you  carry  on  with  our  neighbour  when  he  is 
away.  He  knows  it  was  for  our  neighbour,  and  not 
for  him,  that  you  brought  this  dinner  ;  and  now 
there'll  be  a  nice  kettle  of  fish." 

The  woman,  as  you  may  guess,  turned  red  and 
became  quite  frightened. 

'*  Heaven  help  me  !  heaven  help  me  !  "  she  mut- 
tered ;  and  then  she  set  off  homewards. 

The  farmer  shouted  after  her  ;  but  she  would  not 
hear  him — she  only  ran  as  fast  as  she  could. 

"  I  think  she  is  gone  mad  as  well,"  he  said  ;  *'  or 
what  is  it  she  is  running  after  .?  " 

*'  Indeed,  I  don't  know,"  said  the  lad  ;  "  unless 
the  house  is  on  fire." 

'*  You  don't  say  so  !  "  shouted  the  farmer  ;  and  he 
took  to  his  heels  as  well. 

But  his  wife  was  more  nimble  on  her  legs,  and 
she  got  home  first.  She  ran  into  the  kitchen  and 
hid  herself  in  the  baker's  oven.  The  farmer  rushed 
to  the  well  and  filled  a  bucket  with  water,  and  ran 

114 


OF  THE 


UNIVERSITY 

_,         OF 


THE    ARTFUL   LAD 

into   the   kitchen.      But    he    could    see    no    fire  any- 
where. 

"  I  wonder  it  it's  in  the  baker's  oven  !  "  he  said  ; 
and  opened  the  door  and  threw  the  whole  bucket  of 
water  into  it.  The  wife  began  to  shout  and  cry  : 
"  My  dear,  kind  husband !  Don't  be  angry  with 
me  !  I  will  never  ask  our  neighbour  here  any  more 
when  vou  are  out,  and  I'll  never  take  him  any  food 
either." 

"  Ah  ha  !  "  said  the  farmer.  "  Is  that  how 
matters  stand  .?  It's  no  wonder  then  that  vou  have 
nothing  but  water-gruel  for  me  !  Did  ever  one  hear 
the  like  .?  But  I'll  not  stand  it  any  longer  ;  no,  I'll 
not  stand  it  !  " 

And  he  dragged  his  wife  out  of  the  oven  and 
began  to  beat  her  as  hard  as  he  could. 

The  wife  cried  and  screamed,  but  all  of  no  avail  ; 
the  more  she  screamed  the  more  he  belaboured  her, 
for  now  he  was  fairly  started. 

Just  then  the  lad  came  in. 

"  I  think  you  had  better  take  a  rest  now,  master," 
he  said  ;  "  for  I  suppose  you  have  been  thanking 
mistress  for  the  grand  feast." 

"  You  think  so  .?  "  said  the  farmer.  "  No — o  ! 
She  must  have  more  !  "  And  so  he  wanted  to  begin 
again. 

'•  No,  stop  !  "  said  the  lad  ;   "  it's  enough  now." 

"  Is  it  }  "  said  the  farmer.  "  I  suppose  it'll  have  to 
do  then.     But  I  haven't  let  him  have  anything  yet." 

117 


SWEDISH    FAIRY  TALES 

"  You  mustn't  either,"  said  the  lad. 

"Mustn't  I  ?  Yes,  indeed  Iwill;  and  in  such  a 
way  that  I'll  break  every  bone  of  that  rascal's  back." 

'*  No,  indeed  you  mustn't,"  said  the  lad.  "  I'll 
manage   him." 

"  Will  you  ?  "  said  the  farmer  ;  and  he  did  not  at 
all  object  to  this,  for  he  had  seen  sufficient  to  know 
that  the  lad  was  able  to  manage  it  better  than  he, 
and  that  it  was  no  joke  when  any  one  got  into  his 
clutches. 

'*  Well,  you  had   better  do  it,  then  !  "  he  said. 

So  the  lad   went   to   the  neighbour. 

"  Good  evening  !  "  he  said. 

"  Good  evening  !  How  are  things  going  ?  "  said 
the  neighbour. 

"  Very  badly,"  said  the  lad  ;  *'  for  I  must  tell  you 
that  master  is  sharpening  his  axe,  and  is  so  furious 
with  you  that  if  you  don't  take  care  of  yourself 
you'll  never  know  what  will  happen.  He  has  sworn 
he'll  cut  those  shanks  of  yours  to  bits  because  you 
carry  on  with  his  wife  when  he  is  away." 

**  Oh  dear,  oh  dear  !  What  a  scrape  I  have  got 
into  !     What  can  a  wretched   man  like  me  do  .?  " 

"  Well,  you  must  listen  to  what  I  say,"  said  the 
lad  ;  "  you  see,  they  have  scarcely  any  corn  left  at  our 
place  and  if  you  will  give  me  two  barrels  of  rye, 
half  a  barrel  of  peas,  and  a  quartern  of  wheat,  I  shall 
be  able  to  keep  him  quiet." 

"  Are  you  mad  .?     So  much  for  so  little  .?  " 

ii8 


THE    ARTFUL    LAD 

"  How  do  I  know  if  it's  too  much  or  too  little  ?  " 
said  the  lad  ;  "  but  I'll  ask  your  wife  about  it,  and 
then  we  shall  soon   know." 

'*  No,  stop  !  "  said  the  farmer.  "  My  wife,  you  see, 
has  such  a  hasty  temper.  "But  one  barrel  of  rye  I 
might  be  able  to  manage,  if  only  she  doesn't  get  to 
hear  of  it." 

"  Two  barrels,"  said  the  lad. 

"  One  barrel,"  said  the  farmer. 

"  Two,"  said  the  lad,  "  or  else^ " 

"  No,   no  !  stop  !     You  shall   have   them   then." 

But  the  lad  was  not  yet  satisfied.  He  wrangled 
and  bargained  so  long  that  he  got  the  quartern  of 
wheat,  but  of  the  peas  he  could  only  get  half  of  what 
he  wanted,  for  else  they  would  run  out  of  pease-meal 
altogether.  The  other  quartern  he  would  owe  him. 
The  lad  was  satisfied  with  this  ;  and  he  was  to  come 
at  midnight  to  fetch  the  corn,  so  that  the  neighbour's 
wife  should  not  know  anything  about  it  ;  and  with 
this  they  parted. 

When  the  lad  came  back  the  farmer  asked  him  : 
"  Well,  have  you  given  him  what  he  deserved  ?  " 

'*  Yes,  you  may  be  sure  of  that,"  said  the  lad. 
"  He  has  now  got  enough  to  make  his  back  smart 
for  some  time  to  come,  and  more  he  may  get  when- 
ever I  have  a  chance.  But  this  you  must  keep  to 
yourself,  and  you  mustn't  let  either  him  or  any  of 
his  notice  anything.  You  understand  that  .?  And 
not  a  word  to  mistress  either." 

119 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

Yes,   that  the  farmer  promised. 

"I  say,  master,"  said  the  lad,  '*  I  think  you  have 
now  taught  mistress  to  be  obedient  and  to  look  after 
the  crumbs  better  ;  but  she  has  scarcely  a  morsel  in 
the  house,  so  I  will  be  off  to  the  mill,  so  that  she  can 
get  her  barrels  and  bins  filled." 

"  To  the  mill  ?  "  said  the  farmer.  "  What  are 
you  going  to  grind  ?  We  have  scarcely  anything  else 
but  siftings  in  the  bins." 

''  Oh,  ril  see  to  that,"  said  the  lad.  '*  Go  to  bed, 
and  don't  trouble  about  it." 

"That's  a  wonderful  lad!"  thought  the  farmer. 
And  then  he  did  as  the  lad  had  told  him  ;  but  the  lad 
went  into  the  cart-house  and  greased  the  wheels  of 
the  cart  and  got  ready  to  start.  In  the  middle  of  the 
night  he  called  at  the  neighbour's  for  the  corn,  and 
then  he   drove  to   the  mill. 

But  we  know  what  womenfolk  are.  Even  if 
they  never  go  farther  than  from  the  hearth  to  the 
kitchen  shelf  they  know  what's  going  on  in  other 
people's  houses  for  all  that.  And  if  they  don't  know 
they  begin  to  wonder,  and  don't  rest  till  they  have 
found  out.  The  neighbour's  wife  knew  well  enough 
how  things  were  at  the  other  farm,  and  when  she 
heard  they  had  taken  on  a  servant  lad,  she  wondered 
what  they  were  going  to  give  him  to  eat,  and  when 
she  was  told  they  had  a  cartload  of  corn  at  the  mill, 
she  began  to  wonder  still  more.  Yes,  she  wondered 
and  wondered,  and  could  not  rest  till  she  had  found 

1 20 


THE   ARTFUL    LAD 

out  where  they  had  got  the  corn  from.  She  had 
her  mother  hving  witli  her — an  old  crone 
between  eighty  and  ninety,  or  thereabout.  But, 
old  as  she  was,  she  was  just  as  inquisitive  as  her 
daughter.  And  they  kept  on  wondering  so  long  till 
at  last  they  hit  upon  a  plan  ;  and  then  the  woman 
went  to  her  neighbour. 

**  Good  morning  !  "  she  said. 

"  Good  morning !  "  said  the  farmer. 

"  We  are  all  going  to  a  party,"  she  said,  "  and 
will  you  kindly  let  me  leave  a  chest  with  you,  while 
we  are  away  ?  For  I  am  rather  anxious  about  the 
chest,  I  must  tell  you,  as  all  the  best  we  have  is 
in    It. 

But  the  best  was  really  her  mother,  who  was 
hidden  in  the  chest,  and  was  to  listen  to  what  the 
people  talked  about.  But  nothing  was  said  about 
this,  of  course. 

"  Oh,  there  won't  be  any  difficulty  about  that," 
said  the  farmer  ;  and  so  the  woman  and  her  servant 
girl  carried  in  the  chest,  and  then  they  set  out  for 
the  party. 

Soon  afterwards  the  lad  came  back  from  the  mill. 
And  now  his  mistress  had  all  kinds  of  flour,  and  she 
began   to   make  both  bread   and  pancakes. 

All  at  once  the  lad  saw  the  chest. 

"  What  chest  is  that  .?  "  said  he. 

"  Oh,  it  belongs  to  our  neighbour,"  said  the 
farmer.      "They  have  gone   to  a  party  and  have  left 

12  1 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

it  with  us  ;  for  there  is  something  very  precious 
in   it,"  he  said. 

"  Ah,  indeed  !  "  said  the  lad.  "  I  wonder  what 
that  can  be  }  But  I  suppose  we  can  have  a  look  at 
it,"  he  said  ;  and  so  he  took  his  axe  and  forced  open 
the  lid. 

He  then  saw  the  old  woman  inside  the  chest. 

'*  Hullo  !  Here's  something  precious  indeed  !  " 
he  said.     *'Just  come  and  look!" 

The  farmer  and  his  wife  looked  into  the  chest, 
and  to  their  horror  saw  the  old  woman  lying  there 
as  if  she  were  dead. 

'*  I  think  she  is  dead,"  said  the  farmer. 

"  And  so  do  I,"  said  the  lad  ;  "  but  we  may  as  well 
try  and  see  if  there  is  life  in  her,  or  what  can  be  the 
matter."  And  so  he  struck  the  side  of  the  chest  with 
his  axe,  to  see  if  she  would  wake  up  and  come  to  her 
senses. 

But  the  old  woman  did  not  move  a  limb  ;  she  lay 
as  stiff  as  a  log. 

Then  he  struck  the  chest  again,  but  still  she  did 
not  stir. 

"  Dead  she  is,"  said  the  lad  ;  '*  but  she  must  have 
come  here  alive,  at  any  rate,  for  she  has  pancake 
and  ham  with  her." 

He  took  a  piece  of  the  pancake  and  put  it  in  her 
mouth,  whereupon  he  closed  the  lid  again,  so  that 
no  one  could  see  it  had  been  opened. 

Later  on  the  neighbour's  wife   came   to  fetch   the 

122 


THE   ARTFUL   LAD 

chest,  which  she  took  away  with  her.  Now  she 
would  get  to  know  a  lot  of  news,  she  thought,  and 
she  was  quite  looking  forward  to  it. 

But  there  was  little  occasion  for  joy,  as  you  may 
imagine,  when  she  opened  the  chest  and  found  that 
her  mother  was  dead,  and  had  a  piece  of  the  pancake 
in  her  mouth. 

"  Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  She  has  been  suffocated  !  " 
she  cried.  "  Oh  dear  !  how  stupid  I  was  not  to 
give  her  as  much  as  a  drop  of  beer  with  her  !  Oh  ! 
what  a  misfortune  !  "  and  she  cried  and  wailed  till  it 
was  terrible  to  hear. 

But  what  was  done  could  not  be  undone,  and 
since  she  could  not  cry  life  into  the  old  mother, 
they  would  have  to  think  of  the  funeral.  And  a 
grand  funeral  it  should  be  ;  that  was  only  fair  and 
reasonable,  in  return  for  all  her  mother  had  suffered. 

And  this  was  done  ;  the  clerk  chanted  over  the 
corpse  till  the  walls  creaked,  and  the  parson  preached 
about  her  life  and  good  deeds  till  every  nook  in  the 
church  resounded  with  his  words.  The  festivities 
were  on  the  same  scale  ;  all  the  parish  was  there, 
with  the  exception  of  the  lad,  for  they  thought  they 
had  nothing  to  thank  him  for. 

But  the  lad  thought  otherwise  ;  and  as  he  could 
not  join  in  the  eating  and  drinking,  he  thought  he 
would  find  something  else  to  do.  He  went  to  the 
churchyard  about  midnight  and  dug  up  the  old 
woman,  carried  her  in  his  arms  and  put  her  in  the 

123 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

cellar  among  the  beer  barrels.  The  beer  he  carried 
across  in  pails  to  his  master's  cellar  and  poured  it 
into  his  barrels,  but  the  taps  he  placed  in  the  old 
woman's  hand,  and  then  he  went  his  way. 

In  the  morning  the  neighbour's  wife  had  to  go  to 
the  cellar  for  beer,  for  the  guests  were  thirsty,  and 
wanted  something  to  moisten  their  parched  throats 
with.  But  you  may  imagine  how  terrified  she  was 
when  she  saw  her  mother  sitting  there. 

"  Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  That's  because  I  left  mother 
in  the  chest  without  giving  her  anything  to  drink," 
she  said. 

She  ran  to  her  husband,  and  he  hurried  to  the 
parson  to  come  and  make  his  mother-in-law  listen 
to  reason.  The  parson  told  him  to  make  his  mind 
easy,  and  if  he  would  promise  to  pay  for  a  new 
funeral,  he  would  read  such  prayers  over  the  corpse 
that  she  would  be  sure  to  rest  in  her  grave,  said  the 
parson  ;  and  the  clerk  would  chant  so  that  it  could 
be  heard  all  over  the  parish  ;  and  that  would  help  a 
good  bit  too,  added  the  clerk. 

The  new  funeral  took  place  on  the  following 
Sunday,  and  this  time  they  did  not  forget  the  old 
custom  of  sewing  the  stockings  together  on  the 
corpse  and  to  put  a  thunderbolt  in  the  coffin.  Yes, 
they  even  put  a  whole  bottle  of  beer  beside  her  ;  and 
now  they  thought  she  could  surely  have  nothing 
to  look  for  in  her  son-in-law's  house.  And  if  the 
feasting  wasn't  greater,  it  wasn't  at  any  rate  less  than 

124 


THE   ARTFUL   LAD 

at  the  first  funeral  ;  for  everything  was  so  grand  that 
the  old  woman  ought  surely  to  rest  satisfied,  they 
thought.  And  so  she  might  perhaps,  if  only  the  lad 
had  been  asked  to  the  feast.  But  they  had  not  asked 
him  this  time  either,  and  so  he  went  to  the  church- 
yard and  dug  her  up  again  and  carried  her  back  to 
the  farm.  He  placed  her  in  the  pea-bin  in  the  barn, 
with  a  corn  shovel  in  each  hand.  The  peas  he  took 
away  with  him,  for  there  was  scarcely  more  than  the 
quartern  which  the  farmer  owed  him,  and  so  he 
went  away,  leaving  the  door  wide  open. 

In  the  morning  they  saw  the  barn  door  was  open, 
and  the  farmer  went  to  see  what  was  the  reason. 
But  he  nearly  went  out  of  his  mind  when  he  saw 
his  mother-in-law  sitting  in  the  pea-bin,  and  found 
what  havoc  she  had  made  there.  "  Did  you  ever 
see  anything  like  it  ?  This  time  she  wanted  to  pay 
us  out  for  the  pancake  which  choked  her,"  he  said. 
"  It's  quite  impossible  to  please  that  woman." 

But  there  she  sat  in  any  case  ;  and  since  she  would 
not  take  herself  off,  there  was  no  help  for  it  but  to 
go  to  the  parson  again.  He  wondered  greatly  at  the 
old  woman,  who  would  not  take  any  notice  of  all 
they  had  read  and  chanted  over  her.  But  if  the  man 
would  pay  him  double  fees,  he  would  read  so  many 
prayers  over  her  that  she  must  remain  in  her  grave  ; 
"  there  could  be  no  question  about  that,"  said  the 
parson.  And  the  clerk  would  have  to  get  some 
assistance,   and   they  would  sing  so  that  it  would  be 

125 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

heard  over  seven  parishes ;  "  and  that  would  be  sure  to 
help,"  said  the  clerk.  The  third  funeral  then  took 
place,  and  they  had  now  taken  every  care  that  the 
old  woman  should  remain  where  she  was.  Yes,  the 
parson  read,  the  clerk  chanted,  and  all  the  relatives, 
both  in  and  outside  the  parish,  were  asked  to  the 
funeral  feast. 

But  when  the  devil  is  abroad,  it's  little  use  to 
bar  and  bolt,  and  the  lad  was  not  asked  this  time 
either. 

Close  upon  midnight  the  farmer  said  to  the 
parson  :  "  I  am  afraid  that  my  mother-in-law  is 
not  satisfied  this  time  either  !  Won't  you  let  me 
drive  you  to  the  church,  so  that  you  could  read  over 
her  once  more,  and  then  she  would  surely  be  at 
rest  ?  "  The  parson  would  rather  be  excused,  for  he 
was  enjoying  himself  at  the  funeral  feast ;  but  the 
farmer  begged  and  prayed  so  hard  that  the  parson 
promised  to  go,  and  so  they  drove  off.  When  they 
came  to  the  churchyard,  the  lad  had  already  been 
there  and  dug  up  the  old  woman,  but  he  had  not  got 
further  than  behind  the  church,  and  there  he  sat 
in  a  corner  with  the  body  in  his  lap. 

The  moon  was  shining,  and  the  farmer  had  a  foal, 
which  was  frolicking  about  after  the  mare.  While 
the  parson  was  reading  over  the  grave  the  lad  got 
hold  of  the  foal,  and  then  he  took  a  stake  and  fixed 
it  to  the  old  woman's  back,  so  that  she  could  keep 
upright,  and  then  he  placed  her   across  the  foal. 

126 


THE  ARTFUL   LAD 

When  the  parson  had  finished  he  and  the  farmer 
set  out  on   their  way  back. 

*'  Now  I  think  your  mother-in-law  will  rest  where 
she  is,"  said  the  parson  ;  but  the  same  moment  the 
old  woman  rushed  past  as  swiftly  as  an  arrow  on  the 
foal's  back.  The  parson  stood  aghast  and  did  not 
know  what  to  say,  and  the  farmer  was  quite  at  his 
wit's  end  ;  neither  the  parson  nor  the  clerk  could 
manage  her.  All  the  guests  were  lost  in  wonder, 
and  pitied  the  farmer  all  they  could,  but  they  could 
not  give  him  any  advice. 

At  last  his  neighbour  said  to  him  :  *'  I  think 
we'll  have  to  send  for  my  servant  lad.  He  may 
be  able  to  manage  the  matter,  for  he  is  never  at 
a  loss. 

"  Ah,  but  what  can  he  do  ?  Is  he  better  than  the 
parson  and  the  clerk  ? "  they  all  said.  But  the 
farmer  was  quite  certain  that  his  lad  was  not  to  be 
despised,  and  since  there  was  nothing  else  to  be  done 
they  might  as  well  try  what  he  could  do.  And  so 
they  sent  for  him,  and  he  came. 

"  Can  you  tell  me  how  I  shall  make  peace  with 
my  mother-in-law  ?  "  asked  the  farmer. 

'*  I  should  think  I  can,"  said  the  lad.  *'  That's 
not  a  difficult  matter.  Let  me  have  the  old  woman 
and  ril  read  so  many  prayers  over  her  that  she'll 
keep  quiet  for  good,"  he  said.  "  But  I  must  have  a 
hundred  dollars  for  my  trouble." 

That  was  a  lot  of  money,  but  if  she  would  only 

127 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

leave   him  in  peace  it  might  not  be  so  unreasonable 
after  all,  thought  the  farmer. 

The  lad  then  took  the  old  woman  and  carried  her 
to  the  churchyard  and  buried  her  ;  and  as  he  did  not 
dig  her  up  again  she  remained  where  she  ought  to 
be. 

And  the  people  of  the  parish  now  began  to  say 
the  lad  was  a  far  better  hand  at  reading  over  the 
dead  than   the  parson  himself. 

He  got  the  hundred  dollars  ;  and  he  well  deserved 
them,  thought  the  farmer ;  for  if  it  had  not  been  for 
the  lad  his  mother-in-law  would  have  worried  him 
into  his  grave,  he  declared.  But  he  was  anything 
but  pleased  about  all  the  money  he  had  had  to 
pay  the  parson,  for  his  chest  was  now  cleaned  out 
altogether. 

From  that  time  there  was  a  change  in  the  parish. 
The  farmer  who  had  been  rich  only  just  managed 
to  keep  things  going,  but  the  poor  farmer  got  on 
well  and  prospered  in  everything,  so  that  he  was 
worth  several  hundred  dollars  more  at  the  end  of 
the  year.  This  he  had  to  thank  the  lad  for  ;  it  was 
only  the  truth,  and  he  should  honestly  reward  him, 
he  said. 

But  the  lad  was  a  wonderful  fellow.  He  had 
a  head  of  his  own,  and  he  would  not  have 
any  payment  for  all  the  help  he  had  given  the 
farmer. 

"  A    hundred    dollars    is  sufficient   payment  for   a 

128 


THE   ARTFUL   LAD 

servant  lad,''  he  said  ;  '*  and  I  have  got  that  from  our 
neighbour,   so   you  do   not  owe   me   anything." 

*'  It's  seldom  you  come  across  such  a  lad,"  said 
the   farmer,   who    did   not   want   to   let  him   go. 

"  I  think  you  must  stop  here  another  year,"  he 
said. 

But  the  lad  thanked  him  for  his  good  offer  ;  he 
could   not  stop   any  longer,   he  said. 

"■  Why  ?  "  asked  the  fiirmer. 

"  Well,  the  parson  has  engaged  me  to  help  him," 
he  said. 

How  he  fared  afterwards  I  have  not  heard  ;  but  if 
that  lad  has  not  become  a  parson,  or  a  dean,  or  a 
bishop,   then   no   one  else   has. 


129 


"ALL  I  POSSESS!" 

There  was  once  a  farmer  who  was  so  stingy 
and  close  fisted  that  he  could  scarcely  find  it  in 
his  heart  to  eat  anything  ;  and  as  for  giving  any- 
thing away  to  anybody,  that  was  quite  out  of  the 
question.  He  also  wanted  to  accustom  his  wife 
to  do  without  eating,  but  it  fared  with  her  as 
with  the  pedlar's  mare  ;  she  died  from  an  over- 
dose of  that  doctrine,  and  so  he  had  to  find  another 
wife  in  her  stead. 

And  although  he  was  what  he  was,  there  were 
plenty  of  girls  who  made  themselves  agreeable 
to  him  and  were  willing  to  begin  where  his  wife 
had  left  off.  For  you  must  know  he  was  rich,  the 
ugly  fellow,  and  it  was  his  money  they  were  after, 
although  they  knew  they  would  have  to  suffer  a 
little  in  return. 

But  he  was  not  satisfied  with  any  of  them,  for  if 
they  ate  ever  so  little,  they  were  sure  to  want  some- 
thing to  eat.  Those  who  were  stout  and  comely 
would  be  too  expensive  to  keep,  and  those  who 
were  thin  and    slender    were    sure    to    have    a    bio; 

130 


"ALL   I   POSSESS!" 

appetite  ;  so  he  was  not  able  to  find  any  one  to  his 
liking,  although  he  had  beefi  all  over  the  parish 
looking   for  one. 

But  the  lad  on  the  farm  came  to  his  assistance. 
He  had  heard  of  a  girl  in  one  of  the  neighbouring 
parishes,  who  was  not  even  able  to  eat  as  much 
as  a  whole  pea  at  one  meal,  but  made  it  do  for 
two. 

The  farmer  was  glad  to  hear  of  this  ;  she  was  the 
girl  he  would  like  to  have,  and  although  she  was 
somewhat  deaf,  so  that  she  never  heard  more  than 
half  of  what  people  said  to  her,  he  lost  no  time  in 
proposing  to  the  girl.  Her  father  and  mother  said 
yes  at  once,  seeing  that  the  suitor  was  so  rich,  and 
it  did  not  take  him  long  to  persuade  the  girl  herself. 
A  husband  she  must  have  some  time  or  other,  and 
so  they  clinched  the  matter,  and  the  farmer  entered 
into  wedlock  for  the  second  time. 

But  after  a  time  he  began  to  wonder  how  his 
wife  really  managed  to  keep  alive,  for  he  noticed 
that  she  never  took  a  morsel  of  food,  or  even  drank 
so  much  as  a  drop  of  water,  and  this  he  thought 
was  altogether  too  little.  But  she  seemed  to  thrive 
very  well  for  all  that,  and  he  even  thought  she  was 
getting  a  little  stouter. 

*'  I  wonder  if  she's  deceiving  me  ?  "  he  thought. 

So  one  day,  when  he  was  driving  home  from  his 
work  in  the  fields,  he  happened  to  meet  his  wife, 
who  was  coming  from  the  cowshed  with  the  milk. 

131  K  2 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

"  I  wonder  if  she  doesn't  take  a  sip  of  the  milk 
when  she  is  straining  it,"  he  thought,  and  so  he 
asked  the  lad  to  help  him  up  on  the  roof  and  pull 
the  damper  aside,  for  he  wanted  to  look  down  the 
chimney  and  see  what  his  wife  was  doing.  And 
this  he  did.  He  climbed  up  on  the  roof  and  put 
his  head  down  the  chimney,  peering  and  prying  all 
he  could. 

The  lad  then  went  in  to. his  mistress. 

"  Master  is  now  looking  down  the  chimney,"  he 
said. 

"Down  the  chimney.?"  said  the  wife.  "Well, 
then  you  must  put  some  faggots  on  the  hearth  and 
make  a  fire." 

'*  I  daren't,"  said  the  lad. 

"  If  you  daren't,  I  dare,"  said  the  woman,  and  so 
she  made  a  fire  and  blew  into*  it. 

The  farmer  began  shouting,  for  the  smoke  was 
nearly  suffocating  him. 

"  Bless  me,  is  that  you,  husband  .?  "  said  his  wife. 

"  Yes,  of  course  it  is,"  said  the  farmer. 

"  What  are  you  hanging  there  for?  "  she  said. 

"  Oh,  1  was  longing  so  much  for  you,  wifey,  that 
I  went  the  shortest  way,"  he  said,  and  then  he  fell 
down  on  the  hearth,  and  burned  himself  a  good 
deal. 

Some  days  passed  and  his  wife  neither  ate  nor 
drank,  but  if  she  did  not  grow  stouter  she  did  not 
become  thinner. 

132 


"  ALL    I   POSSESS  !  " 

"  I  wonder  if  she  doesn't  eat  some  of  the  bacon 
when  she  goes  to  the  storehouse,"  he  thought  ;  and 
so  he  stole  into  the  storehouse  and  ripped  up  one 
end  of  a  large  feather  bed  which  was  lying  there. 
He  crept  into  it  and  asked  the  lad  to  sew  the 
ticking  together  again. 

The  lad  did  as  he  was  bid,  and  then  he  went  in  to 
his  mistress. 

"  Master  is  now  lying  inside  the  feather  bed  in 
the  storehouse,"  he  said. 

'*  Inside  the  feather  bed  in  the  storehouse  .?  "  said 
the  wife.  "  You  must  go  and  beat  it  well,  so  that 
neither  dust  nor  moths  get  into  it,"  she  said,  and  so 
she  took  down  a  couple  of  stout  hazel  sticks  and 
gave  them  to  the  lad. 

"  I  daren't,"  said  the  lad. 

"  If  you  daren't,  I  dare,"  said  the  wife,  and  she 
went  to  the  storehouse  and  began  to  beat  the 
feather  bed  with  all  her  might,  so  that  the  feathers 
flew  about,  and  the  farmer  began  shouting,  for  the 
blows  hit  him  right  across  his  face. 

"  Bless  me,  is  that  you,  husband  ?  "  said  the 
woman. 

"  Yes,  of  course  it   is,"  said  the  farmer. 

"  What   are   you  lying  there  for  .?  "  said  his  wife. 

"  I  thought  I  would  lie  on  something  better  than 
straw  for  once,"  said  the  husband.  They  then  ripped 
open  the  feather  bed,  and  when  he  came  out  the 
blood  was  still  streaming  down  his  face. 

133 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

Some  days  then  passed  and  the  wife  neither 
ate  nor  drank,  but  her  husband  thought  she  was 
growing  still  stouter  and  more  cheerful  than  ever. 

"  The  devil  knows  what's  at  the  bottom  of  all 
this,"  he  thought.  "  I  wonder  if  she  drinks  the 
beer  when  she  goes  into  the  cellar  ?  " 

And  so  he  went  down  into  the  cellar  and  knocked 
the  bottom  out  of  an  empty  beer-barrel,  and  then  he 
crept  into  the  barrel,  and  asked  the  lad  to  put  the 
bottom  in  again.  The  lad  did  as  he  was  bid,  and 
then  he  went  in  to  his  mistress. 

"  Master  is  now  lying  in  the  beer-barrel  in  the 
cellar,"  said  the  lad. 

"  In  the  beer-barrel  in  the  cellar  ?  "  said  the  wife. 
"  You  must  fill  it  with  boiling  juniper  lye,  for  it's 
getting  sour  and  leaky,"  she  said. 

"  I  daren't,"  said  the  lad. 

"  If  you  daren't,  I  dare,"  said  the  wife,  and  so  she 
began  boiling  juniper  lye,  and  then  she  poured 
it  into  the  barrel.  The  farmer  began  to  shout,  but 
she  poured  a  whole  kettleful  into  the  barrel,  and 
yet  another    after  that. 

The  man  went  on  shouting  louder  and  louder. 

*'  Bless  me,  is  that  you,  husband  ?  "  said  the  wife. 

"  Yes,  of  course  it  is,"  yelled  the  farmer. 

"  What  are  you  lying  there  for  ?  "  said  his  wife. 

But  the  farmer  was  not  able  to  give  any  answer. 
He  only  moaned  and  groaned,  for  he  was  terribly 
scalded,  and  when  they  got  him  out  of  the  barrel  he 

134 


"  ALL   I   POSSESS  !  " 

was  more  dead  than  alive,  and  they  had  to  carry  him 
to  his  bed. 

He  now  wished  to  see  the  parson,  and  while  the 
lad  went  to  fetch  him  the  wife  began  to  prepare 
some  tasty  dishes  and  to  make  cheese  cakes  and  other 
nice  things  for  the  parson,  so  that  he  should  not  go 
away  with  an  empty  stomach. 

But  when  the  farmer  saw  how  lavish  she  was  in 
preparing  all  the  dishes  he  shouted  still  louder  than 
when  he  was  scalded  : 

*'  All  I  possess  !  All  I  possess  !  "  he  cried,  for  he 
now  believed  they  were  going  to  eat  up  everything 
he  had,  and  he  knew  that  both  the  parson  and  the 
clerk  were  people  who  could  make  themselves  at 
home   and   make  a  clean    sweep   of  the  table. 

When  the  parson  arrived  the  farmer  was  still 
shouting  : 

"  All  I  possess !     All  I   possess !  " 

"  What  is  it  your  husband  is  saying  .?  "  said  the 
parson. 

"  Oh,  my  husband  is  so  terribly  good  and  kind," 
said  the  wife.  "  He  means  that  I  shall  have  all  he 
possesses,"  she  said. 

"  His  words  must  then  be  considered  and  looked 
upon  as  an  intimation  of  his  last  will  and  testament," 
said  the  parson. 

"Just  so  !  "  said  the  wife. 

"  All  I  possess !  All  I  possess !  "  cried  the  farmer, 
and  then  he  died. 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

His  wife  then  had  him  buried,  and  afterwards  she 
went  to  the  proper  authorities  about  her  husband's 
affairs.  And  as  both  the  parson  and  the  clerk  could 
give  evidence  that  the  farmer's  last  words  were  that 
she  should  have  all  he  possessed  she  got  it  all.  And 
when  a  year  was  gone  she  married  the  lad  on  the 
farm,  but  whether  after  that  time  she  was  just  as 
hard   of  hearing   I    have  never   heard. 


136 


KATIE    GREY.i 

There  were  once  upon  a  time  a  man  and  a 
woman  who  agreed  so  well  together  that  a  harsh 
word  had  never  passed  between  them  since  the 
beginning  of  their  married  life  ;  for  whatever  the 
husband  did  the  wife  thought  right  and  proper, 
and  everything  that  she  did  the  husband  thought 
the  best  that  could  be  done.  They  had  not 
much  to  manage  with,  so  they  had  to  be  very 
careful,  even  with  the  crumbs  ;  but  no  matter  how 
black  things  looked,  they  were  always  happy  and 
contented. 

But  envy  seems  to  find  her  way  into  every  corner, 
be  it  ever  so  humble,  and  it  there  is  no  one  else  who 
begrudges  people  living  in  peace  Old  Nick  always 
tries  to  get  his  foot  inside.     So  he  lay  in  wait  outside 

^  Under  the  name  of  Titta^  or  Katie  Grey^  there  appears  in  many 
Swedish  legends  a  witch  of  the  worst  kind,  but  still  perfectly  human 
in  form.  In  her  popular  tradition  has  desired  to  personify  that 
malice,  coupled  with  cunning,  which  was  likely  to  be  found  in  a 
wicked  woman,  while  at  the  same  time  it  has  endeavoured  to  show 
that  before  such  a  one  even  the  prince  of  darkness  must  tremble. 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

their  house,  wondering  how  he  should  be  able  to 
sow  ever  so  little  dissension   there. 

He  tried  in  one  way  and  he  tried  in  another  and 
he  tried  in  every  way  ;  but  although  he  was  always 
hovering  about  the  house  they  kept  so  well  together 
that  he  could  not  find  a  single  chink  through  which 
he  could  slip  in,  however  small  he  made  himself. 

But  what  Old  Nick  himself  cannot  accomplish 
wicked  women  may  manage.  In  the  same  neigh- 
bourhood there  lived  one  called  Katie  Grey,  who  was 
one  of  the  right  sort.  To  her  he  went,  and  asked  if 
she  could  set  the  old  couple   against   each   other. 

That  wouldn't  be  very  difficult,  she  thought  ;  and 
if  only  he  would  give  her  a  new  jacket  and  a 
petticoat  with  red  and  green  and  blue  stripes  she 
would  be  sure  to  manage  it  so  that  Old  Nick  himself 
should  not  be  able  to  do  it  better.  Well,  Old  Nick 
agreed  to  that,  and  so  they  parted. 

Early  next  morning,  as  soon  as  the  husband  had 
set  out  for  the  forest,  Katie  Grey  rushed  off  to  see 
the  wife. 

"  Good  morning,  and  well  met !  "  she  said,  making 
herself  as  pleasant  as  possible. 

"  Good  morning  !  "  said  the  wife. 

"  You  have  a  very  good  husband,  you  have, 
haven't  you  .?  "  said  Katie  Grey. 

"  Yes,  the  Lord  be  praised  !  "  said  the  wife.  "  When 
the  first  snow  falls  this  autumn  it  will  be  six  and 
thirty    years    since    we    were    married,     and    never 

138 


KATIE   GREY 

during  all  these  years  has  a  single  harsh  word  fallen 
from  his  lips." 

Katie  Grey  quite  agreed  with  her,  as  you  may 
guess.  "  Yes,  he  is  no  doubt  one  of  the  best  men 
one  can  meet  in  a  day's  walk,"  she  said.  "  But  I 
know  people  who  have  got  on  just  as  well  as  you 
two,  and  yet  trouble  came  in  the  end." 

*'  Poor  people  !  "  said  the  wife.  "  But  just  as  soon 
will  the  mouse  lie  down  with  the  cat,  as  such  things 
will  be  heard  about  us,"  she  said. 

Well,  that  might  be.  Katie  Grey  was  not  one 
to  believe  all  that  people  said,  but  "  better  wise 
beforehand  than  hasty  afterwards,"  and  "  those  who 
remedies  know,  can  well  kill  illness,  I  trow  ;  "  and 
as  she  knew  of  a  remedy  against  such  a  misfor- 
tune, she  thought  she  ought  to  mention  it,  for  when 
they  had  lived  together  like  a  pair  of  turtle  doves 
for  six  and  thirty  years  it  would  be  both  "  sin  and 
shame"  if  they  were  now  to  begin  to  bicker  and 
quarrel. 

The  wife   could   not   say   anything  to   that. 

"  Well,  you  see,"  said  Katie  Grey,  for  now  she 
thought  she  had  got  the  better  of  the  wife,  "  if  you 
take  a  razor  and  draw  it  three  times  along  a  strop 
against  the  sun,  and  then  cut  off  six  hairs  from  your 
husband's  beard  just  under  his  chin  one  night  when 
he  is  asleep,  and  afterwards  burn  them,  he  will  never 
be   angry  with  you." 

The  wife  said  she  did  not  think  she  would  ever  be 

139 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

in  need  of  that  remedy,  but  she  thanked   her  for  her 
good  advice  all  the  same. 

Katie  Grey  then  set  out  for  the  forest,  where  the 
husband  was   making  osier-bands. 

"  Good  morning,   and   well   met  !  "  she  said. 

*'  Good  morning  to  you  !  "  said  the  man. 

"  What  a  very  kind  and  good  wife  you  have  got !  " 
she  said. 

"  That's  true  enough,"  said  the  man.  "  There 
isn't  a  better  woman  on  this  side  of  the  sun,  nor  has 
there  ever  been   one   either." 

"  That  may  be,"  said  Katie  Grey,  "  but  so  was 
Eve  also  before  the  Evil  One  got  the  better  of  her." 

"  Yes,  that's  true  ;  but  my  wife,  you  see,  is  not 
one  of  that  sort,  for  she  never  puts  her  foot  where 
such   wickedness    is   going   on,"  he  said. 

"  Don't  be  so  sure  about  that,  for  the  Evil  One  can 
creep  through  the  eye  of  a  needle,"  she  said,  "  so  that 
no  one  is  secure  against  him.  Not  that  I  want  to 
make  any  mischief  between  people, — no  one  can 
say  that  about  me, — but  those  who  will  run  into 
danger  had  better  be  well  looked  after.  '  All  is  not 
gold  that  glitters,'  and  *  outside  mild,  inside  wild,' 
often  go  together,"  she  said. 

'*  You  talk  according  to  the  sense  you  have,"  said 
the  man,  who  began  to  feel  angry.  "  My  wife  is  no 
more  likely  to  wish  me  evil  than  the  sun  to  shine 
in  the  middle  of  the  night — that  I  may  tell  you," 
he  said. 

140 


KATIE   GREY 

"  Thinking  and  believing  do  no  harm  to  anybody," 
she  said.  "  But  I  think  you  will  do  a  wise  thing 
in  not  closing  your  eyes  to-night  when  your  wife 
comes  and  draws  a  razor  across  your  throat.  But 
not  a  word  about  this  to  any  one,  do  you  hear  ?  "  she 
said,   and  off  she   went. 

One  gets  to  hear  a  good  deal  before  one  has  done 
with  this  world — but  did  one  ever  hear  the  like  of 
this  ?  Could  it  be  possible  ?  The  man  felt  as 
strange  in  his  head  as  if  he  had  rolled  down  the 
church  steeple  ;  but  whatever  it  was  that  ailed  him, 
there  he  stood  pondering  and  brooding. 

Pshaw  !  She  was  after  all  only  a  wicked  woman, 
who  wanted  to  set  them  against  each  other.  Yes, 
that  was  it  ;  and  he  was  very  sorry  he  had  not  given 
her  a  good  thrashing  for  her  trouble. 

But  although  he  worked  away  and  toiled  his  best 
with  his  osiers,  he  could  not  get  out  of  his  head 
what  Katie  Grey  had  put  into  it  ;  and  when  he  came 
home  in  the  evening  he  was  so  depressed  and  silent 
that  his  wife  had  never  seen  him  in  such  a  state 
before,  so  strange  was  he. 

"  Goodness  knows,  what  can  be  the  matter  with 
my  husband  ?  "  she  thought  ;  and  then  she  suddenly 
recollected  what   Katie  Grey  had   told  her. 

"  I  may  as  well  take  three  hairs  from  his  beard,"  she 
thought,  "  for  when  you  have  had  a  happy  home  for 
six  and  thirty  years,  it  isn't  likely  you'll  let  it  slip 
through  your  fingers  all   at   once."      But  she  did  not 

143 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

dare  to  speak  to  her  husband, — she   only  asked  him 
to  lend  her  his  razor. 

He  let  her  have  it,  but  he  sighed  and  thought  to 
himself :  '*  I  wonder  if  she  would  do  me  any  harm  ? 
I  wonder  if  she  really  could  ?  Oh,  no  !  that's  quite 
impossible." 

But  he  put  his  axe  close  to  his  bed,  and  then  they 
both  lay  down  to  rest. 

Later  on   in   the  night  she   asked  : 

"  Are  you   asleep,  husband  ?  " 

This  startled  the  man,  but  he  did  not  say  a  word, 
and  the  wife  stole  out  of  bed  and  lighted  a  candle. 

The  man's  heart   began   to   beat  violently. 

The  wife  then  took  the  razor  and  drew  it  three 
times  along  the  leather  belt  of  her  husband's  apron, 
and  went  towards  the  bed. 

The  blood  rushed  to  the  man's  head,  so  that  he 
almost  lost  his  senses,  but  he  lay  as  quiet  as  a  stone, 
and  only  moved  his  hand  towards  the  axe. 

The  wife  then  came  close  to  the  bed  to  cut  the 
three   hairs   from  his    beard. 

But  as  she  leaned  forward  the  man  suddenly 
jumped  up  and  seized  his  axe,  with  which  he 
struck  his  wife,  who  fell  down  dead  on    the    floor. 

He  felt  he  had  done  a  very  wicked  deed,  but  he 
had  not  thought  that  things  would  come  to  this 
pass. 

He  became  much  distressed — for  what  was  he 
going  to  do  ? 

144 


JUST    THEN     TWO    WHITE     PIGEONS     CAME     FLYING    OUT    OF    THE 
COTTAGE.    .    .    .    THEY   WERE  THE   MAN   AND   HIS   WIFE. 


KATIE    GREY 

It  was  perhaps  best  he  followed  his  wife,  and 
so   he   took   a   knife   and   cut  his   throat. 

Just  then  he  heard  some  one  laughing  outside  the 
window,  and  he  looked  in  that  direction.  There  he 
saw  Katie  Grey,  and  then  he  died. 

Katie  Grey  was  now  quite  proud  that  she  had 
been   able  to  do  more  than  the  Evil    One   himself. 

Old  Nick  was  not  far  off  either.  He  came  with 
a  petticoat  and  a  jacket  hanging  on  a  long,  long 
pole,  which   he   held  out  towards  her. 

"  Come  nearer,  so  that  I  may  shake  hands  with  you 
and  thank  you,"  she  said. 

"  No,  keep  away  from  me  !  "  he  cried,  and  kept  her 
back  with  his  pole,  which  he  poked  at  her. 

"  You  call  me  the  Wicked  One  and  the  Evil  One 
and  such  things,  but  I  am  not  as  wicked  as  you  are, 
at  any  rate.  Look  here,"  he  said,  "  take  what  belongs 
to  you,  so  that  I  can  have  done  with  you."  And  with 
this  he  threw  the  pole  and  the  clothes  at  her,  and 
took  to  his  heels  as  fast  as  ever  he  could,  so  afraid 
was   he  of  her. 

Katie  Grey  stood  wondering  and  staring  after  him. 
Just  then  two  white  pigeons  came  flying  out  of  the 
cottage,  and  flew  right  up  into  the  clouds  above. 
They  were  the  man  and  his  wife  ;  for  though  Old 
Nick  had  wished  them  evil,  the  Lord  would  take 
care  of  them.  But  what  would  become  of  Katie 
Grey,  seeing  that  the  Evil  One  himself  did  not  dare 
to   go  near  her,  it  is  not  easy  to  say. 

147  L    2 


THE  COCK  AND  THE  CRESTED  HEN 

There  was  once  a  cock  who  had  a  whole  farm- 
yard of  hens  to  look  after  and  manage  ;  and  among 
them  was  a  tiny  little  crested  hen.  She  thought  she 
was  altogether  too  grand  to  be  in  company  with  the 
other  hens,  for  they  looked  so  old  and  shabby  ;  she 
wanted  to  go  out  and  strut  about  all  by  herself,  so 
that  people  could  see  how  fine  she  was,  and  admire 
her  pretty  crest  and  beautiful  plumage. 

So  one  day  when  all  the  hens  were  strutting  about 
on  the  dust-heap  and  showing  themselves  off  and 
picking  and  clucking,  as  they  were  wont  to  do,  this 
desire  seized  her,  and  she  began  to  cry  : 

"  Cluck,  cluck,  cluck,  cluck,  over  the  fence  !  cluck, 
cluck,  cluck,  over  the  fence !  "  and  wanted  to  get  away. 

The  cock  stretched  his  neck  and  shook  his  comb 
and  feathers,  and  cried  : 

"  Go  not  there  !  "     And  all  the  old  hens  cackled  : 

"  Go-go-go-go  not  there  !  " 

But  she  set  off  for  all  that ;  and  was  not  a  little 
proud  when  she  got  away,  and  could  go  about 
pluming  and  showing  herself  off  quite  by  herself. 

148 


THE   COCK   AND   THE    CRESTED   HEN 

Just  then    a  hawk   began   to  fly  round    in  a  circle 
above   her,  and   all   of  a   sudden   he   swooped    down 


"cluck  !   CLUCK  !"   SHE  CRIED,    AND   WANTED   TO  GET  AWAY. 


upon    her.     The   cock,   as    he   stood  on    top  of  the 
dust-heap   stretching  his  neck  and  peering  first  with 

149 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 


one  eye  and  then  with  the  other,  had  long  noticed 
him,  and  cried  with  all  his  might  : 

"  Come,  come,  come  and  help  !  Come,  come, 
come  and  help  !  "  till  the  people  came  running  to  see 
what  was  the  matter.  They  frightened  the  hawk  so 
that  he  let  go  the  hen,  and  had  to  be  satisfied  with 
her  tuft  and  her  finest  feathers,  which  he  had 
plucked  from  her.  And  then,  you  may  be  sure, 
she  lost  no  time  in  running  home  ;  she  stretched 
her  neck,  and  tripped  along,  crying  : 

"  See,  see,  see,  see  how  I  look  !  See,  see,  see,  see 
how  I  look !  " 

The  cock  came  up  to  her  in  his  dignified  way, 
drooped   one   of  his  wings,  and  said  : 

"  Didn't   I   tell  you  ?  " 

From  that  time  the  hen  did  not  consider  herself 
too  good  to  be  in  the  company  of  the  old  hens  on 
the  dust-heap. 


'    '■iW'^   A  7,' 


OLD  NICK  AND  THE  PEDLAR 

There  was  once  a  pedlar  who  travelled  all  over 
the  world  with  his  bag  on  his  back,  and  a  yard 
measure  in  his  hand.  But  he  did  not  get  on  as  well 
as  other  pedlars,  for  while  they  got  rid  of  two  or 
three  bagfuls,  he  was  not  able  to  get  one  bag  emptied. 

So  one  evening,  as  he  dragged  himself  wearily 
along  the  roadside,  he  happened  to  meet  Old  Nick, 
who  was  lying  in  wait  ;  for  since  people  had  become 
so  Christian,  Old  Nick  had  to  content  himself  with 
pedlars,  and  such  like. 

"  How  is  business  ?  "  asked  Old  Nick. 

"  Oh,  times  are  very  bad,"  said  the  pedlar. 
"  Wherever  I  put  my  head  in  through  the  door,  I 
find  some  of  my  mates  have  been  before  me,  and 
the  womenfolk  will  buy  no  more,  and  the  men  look 
angry,"  he  said. 

"  Well,  there's  a  remedy  for  that,"  said  Old  Nick. 
"  If  you  will  come  to  an  arrangement  with  me 
you'll  find  that  things  will  be  different,"   he  said. 

Yes,  the  pedlar  had  no  objection  to  that,  for  Old 
Nick  would  be  sure  to  have  him   in    the  end   at   any 

151 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

rate  ;  and  so  they  made  a  bargain  that  the  pedlar 
should  sell  all  he  bought,  but  if  the  bags  ever  became 
quite  empty  he  should  belong  to  Old  Nick  there 
and  then. 

That  was  a  good  bargain,  thought  the  pedlar,  for 
he  would  take  care  to  manage  it  so  that  his  bags 
never  became  quite  empty  ;  and  then  he  set  off  home 
and  got  a  horse  and  cart  and  goods  of  all  kinds  on 
credit.  Then  he  drove  from  farm  to  farm  and  from 
one  fair  to  another,  and  before  long  he  had  to  go 
into  town  again  for  more  goods.  But  however 
briskly  business  went,  he  always  managed  to  have 
something  left  in   his   bags. 

But  Old  Nick  is  not  one  to  let  anything  slip 
through  his  fingers  if  he  has  once  got  hold  of  it, 
and  so  he  followed  close  upon  his  heels,  although 
the  pedlar  could  not  see  him. 

So  one  day  he  came  to  Hinnersmess  fair,  where 
there  were  crowds  of  people,  and  business  was  so 
brisk  that  it  was  as  much  as  he  could  do  to  get 
out  his  stuff  and  measure  what  they  wanted.  For 
no  doubt  Old  Nick  had  managed  it  so  that  his 
goods   attracted   the   people's   attention  most. 

There  were  other  pedlars  at  the  fair,  of  course  ; 
but  neither  words  nor  tricks  were  of  any  avail,  for, 
in  spite  of  all  their  gesticulations  and  persuasive 
ways,  they  sold  little  or  nothing,  as  most  of  the 
people  went  to   Old  Nick's  pedlar. 

In  order  to   get  some    share   of  the  business  they 

152 


a  R 


X  -^ 


&  < 


OLD    NICK   AND   THE   PEDLAR 

had  to  sell  their  goods  to  him,  and  no  sooner  were 
they  on  his  stall  than  they  were  sold  there  and  then. 

But  a  pedlar  is  also  a  human  being,  if  not  exactly 
one  of  the  best  sort  ;  and  although  he  was  doing  a 
brisk  business  he  was  obliged  to  leave  his  stall  for  a 
short  time,  and  so  he  asked  one  of  his  mates  to  attend 
to  his  customers  in  his  absence. 

While  he  was  away,  a  man  came  and  asked  how 
much  the  whole  lot  would  cost,  for  he  wanted  to  buy 
it  all,  and  the  horse  and  cart  and  the  bags  as  well. 

"  Six  hundred  crowns,"  said  the  pedlar,  for  you 
see  he  thought  he  might  be  beaten  down.  But  the 
man  did  not  even  try  to  bargain  by  as  much  as  a 
penny;  he  put  the  money  at  once  on  the  stall. 

"  And  now  it's  all  mine,  you  understand,"  he  said  ; 
and  then  he  laughed.  '*  Tell  your  mate  I  shall 
come  to-night  to  fetch  the  goods,  and  then  we  shall 
have  a  drink  together  on  the  strength  of  the  bar- 
gain," he  said  ;  and  then  he  laughed  once  more,  and 
to  such  an  extent  that  it  sounded  like  thunder,  and 
the  next  moment  he  was  gone.  It  was  easy  to  guess 
who  the  person  was,  for  the  whole  market-place 
smelt  of  sulphur./ 

When  the  pedlar  came  back,  he  asked  :  "  Have 
you  sold  anything  ?  " 

'*  Yes,  of  course  I  have,"  said  his  mate.  '*  I  have 
done  a  grand  business,  too  !  I  have  sold  the  whole 
lot,  and  the  horse  and  cart,  and  the  bags  as  well,  for 
four  hundred   crowns  ;    and  here  they   are,"  he   said. 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

and  gave  them  to  him.  But  the  other  two  hundred 
crowns  he  put  in  his  own  pocket,  for  he  wasn't  a 
pedlar  for  nothing,  you  see. 

"  The  Lord  have  pity  on  me  then,  poor  wretch 
that  I  am  !  "  moaned  the  pedlar.  "  Now  I  am 
completely  undone." 

"  Have  you  gone  out  of  your  senses  .?  "  said  his 
mate.  "  He  was  one  of  the  right  sort,  I  can  tell 
you.  He  did  not  even  beat  me  down  a  stiver,  and 
to-night  he  is  coming  to  have  a  drink  with  you  on 
the  strength  of  the  bargain." 

"  Oh  dear,  oh  dear  !  "  cried  the  pedlar  ;  and  he 
wailed  and  moaned  so  terribly  that  everybody  pitied 
him,  for  they  thought  he  had  gone  out  of  his  mind. 

Just  then  a  woman  came  by. 

"  What  is  it  you  are  crying  and  groaning  about  ?  " 
she  asked.  But  the  pedlar  went  on  moaning,  for 
now  he  felt  there  was  no  help  for  him. 

"  Be  quiet  !  "  said  the  woman ;  "  don't  go  on  like 
that,  my  man  !  It  can  never  be  so  bad  but  it  can  be 
bettered,  I  say  ;  for  I  am  Katie  Grey,i  and  I  can 
always  help  people  out  of  their  trouble,  even  if  it  be 
Old  Nick  himself  you  have  fallen  out  with,"  she 
said.  "  Come,  let  me  only  hear  what's  the  matter, 
and  we'll  find  a  way  out  of  it." 

The  pedlar  then  told  her  all  about  his  trouble. 

"  If  that  was  all,"  she  said,  "  she  would  be  able  to 
help  him,  if  he  only  did  what  she  told  him  ;  which 
^  See  the  storj^,  "  Katie  Grey." 

156 


OLD   NICK   AND   THE   PEDLAR 

he,  of  course,  was  willing  to  do,  as  long  as  he  could 
save  his  skin. 

When  the  nitrht  had  set  in  Old  Nick  lost  no  time 

o 

in  coming  to  fetch  him. 

"  You  thought  perhaps  you  could  cheat  me,  but 
now  you'll  have  to  come  with  me  after  all,"  he  said. 

"  There's  no  help  for  it,  I  suppose,"  said  the 
pedlar  ;  "  but  tell  me,  master,  w^hat  did  we  arrange  ? 
Was  it  the  whole  lot  you  bought  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Yes,  of  course,"  said  Old  Nick  ;  "  I  bought  the 
whole  lot,  and  horse  and  cart,  and  the  bags  too,  and 
you  remember  the  contract,  I  suppose  ?  " 

"  Well,  then,  you  bought  what  I  have  got  here  in 
this  bag  as  well,"  said  the  pedlar,  pointing  to  a  great 
big  bag  which  stood  in  a  corner. 

"  Yes,  it's  all  mine,"  said  Old  Nick.  "  But  what 
sort  of  goods  have  you  got  in  that  bag  ?  It  looks  so 
strange  !  " 

"  It's  the  best  of  all  I  have,"  said  the  pedlar,  and 
opened  the  bag,  and  who  should  peep  out  but  Katie 
Grey ! 

But  then  Old  Nick  opened  his  eyes  and  gave  a 
start  like  a  scared  hare. 

"  Whew  !  "  he  shouted.  "  I  haven't  bought  that 
bag,  for  any  one  who  knows  that  fiendish  creature 
would  not  have  her  as  a  gift." 

"  Yes,  but  then  you  haven't  bought  all  of  it,"  said 
the  pedlar,  "  for  she  is  mine  as  well,  and  she  must  go 
with  the  lot,"  he  said. 

159 


SWEDISH    FAIRY  TALES 

"  No,  thank  you  !  "  said  Old  Nick.  "  I  can 
easily  do  without  a  pedlar,  for  there  are  more  of 
them  ;  but  if  I  take  Katie  Grey  into  the  bargain 
I  shall  never  have  any  peace.  I  know  that  terrible 
creature,"  he  said. 

With  that  he  released  the  pedlar  from  his  bond, 
and  flew  up  through  the  chimney,  carrying  off  the 
roof  with  him. 

What  happened  afterwards  I  have  never  been  able 
to  find  out  ;  but  if  Old  Nick  could  not  get  on  with 
Katie  Grey,  the  pedlar  is  not  likely  to  have  been 
any  the  better  by  the  exchange  either. 


1 60 


WHY  THE    EXECUTIONER  IS  CALLED 
ASSESSOR 

Many,  many  years  ago — well,  it's  so  very,  very  long 
ago  that  no  one  can  really  tell  how  long  ago  it  was 
— a  number  of  grandees  entered  into  a  conspiracy 
against  the  king.  But  in  spite  of  their  power  and 
arrogance  he  succeeded  in  laying  them  by  the  heels, 
and  those  who  were  not  willing  to  swear  submission 
to  him  there  and  then  were  all  to  lose  their  heads, 
which  was  only  fair  and  just  ;  for  if  one  has  not  got 
more  sense  in  one's  head  than  to  engage  in  such 
foolish  undertakings,  one  may  as  well  do  without  a 
head. 

But  since  they  were  all  such  grand  folks,  the  king 
himself  wanted  to  see  that  everything  was  carried  out 
properly  ;  and  so  he  set  out  for  the  spot  where  the 
execution  was  to  take  place,  which  was  some  distance 
away  in  the  country.  The  executioner  was,  of 
course,  going  there  as  well  ;  but  he  was  not  then 
such  a  great  personage  as  he  is  now,  and  did  not 
travel  in  such  state,  either  at  the  public  expense  or 
at    his    own.      Oh    no,   he  had    to   trudge  and   plod 

i6i  M 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

along  on   his   own  legs,   were   the   distance    ever   so 
great. 

So  it  happened  that  he  got  into  the  middle  of  a  big 
forest  just  as  night  was  setting  in,  and  as  there  was 
no  sign  of  any  house  where  he  could  get  lodgings, 
he  looked  about  for  a  place  where  he  could  lie  down 
and  rest.  But  while  he  was  walking  about  looking 
for  one,  he  saw  some  smoke  rising  out  of  the  earth, 
and  then  he  discovered  in  the  ground  a  trap  door 
covered  with  turf.  If  the  smoke  had  not  been 
coming  out  through  the  chinks  he  would  never  have 
noticed  it. 

While  he  stood  wondering  where  the  smoke  came 
from,  the  trap  door  was  lifted  up,  and  the  sooty  and 
dishevelled  head  of  a  woman  appeared  in  the 
opening. 

"  Bless  the  man  !  "  said  the  woman,  "  have  you  lost 
your  senses,  standing  there  staring  like  that  ?  The 
robbers  will  be  home  directly,  and  if  they  see  you 
they'll  pay  you  out  for  prying  about  here,  and 
you'll  never  hear  the  cuckoo  again,"  she  said,  and 
then  she  disappeared  into  the  ground  again. 

The  executioner  was  not  easily  frightened,  but,  *  he 
who  does  take  care,  will  always  safest  fare  ; '  and 
so  he  quietly  slunk  away. 

But  as  he  trudged  along  he  marked  the  trees  with 
his  axe  ;  for  '  when  one  knows  where  the  wolf  lives, 
one  need  not  go  to  the  furrier  for  his  skin,'  he 
thought. 

162 


WHY  THE  EXECUTIONER  IS  CALLED  ASSESSOR 

So  by  dint  of  walking  and  running  he  came  at 
last  to  his  destination  ;  and  what  he  had  come  there 
to  do  he  did  so  satisfactorily  that  he  was  well 
rewarded,  and  the  king  himself  thanked  him  for  his 
able  assistance.  But  since  the  king  was  so  con- 
descending as  to  speak  to  one  whom  other  people 
would  not  be  seen  with,  the  executioner  thought  he 
might  as  well  have  his  say  also,  and  so  he  told  the 
king  what  he  had  seen  in  the  forest.  The  king  was 
greatly  pleased  to  hear  of  this,  for  these  robbers  had 
done  so  much  mischief  to  him  and  other  folks  that 
he  would   like  to  get  hold  of  them. 

*'  If  I  could  only  get  some  people  to  come  with 
me,"  said  the  executioner,  "  I  should  be  sure  to 
catch  them,  for  now  I   know  where  they   are." 

"  Yes,  that  was  all  very  well,"  thought  the  king  ; 
but  he  wanted  to  do  this  business  in  his  own  way,  for 
he  was  strong  and  bold  beyond  all  bounds.  He  was 
so  powerful,  indeed,  that  no  one  ventured  to  wrestle 
with  him,  for  he  could  throw  one  and  all  to  the 
ground  in  less  than  no  time. 

"  What  do  we  want  with  people  ?  "  he  said.     "  If 
you  will  only  come  with  me  and  show  me  the  way, 
I  think  we  two  might  venture  a  bout  with  them,"  he 
said  ;   *'  for  you  look  no  weakling  either." 

Well,  the  executioner  had  no  objection  to  that, 
for  it  wasn't  every  day  he  was  in  such  company,  and 
so  they  settled  how  they  should  set  about  it. 

The  king  took  off  his  crown  and  all  his  finery,  and 

163  M  2 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

then  they  dressed  themselves  up  like  the  worst  oi 
tramps,  and  blackened  their  faces  and  tore  their 
clothes  into  pieces,  so  that  the  rags  hung  and 
dangled  about  them.  The  king  put  a  sword  inside 
his  trousers,  and  the  executioner  hid  his  axe  under 
his  jacket;  and  so  they  set  out. 

No  sooner  had  they  got  into  the  forest  than  they 
met  the  robbers,  of  whom  there  were  altogether 
twelve. 

'*  Who  are  you  ? "  asked  he  who  seemed  to  be 
their  chief. 

'*  We  are  a  couple  of  miserable  wretches,  who  are 
obliged  to  beg  our  bread,"  said  the  executioner. 
*'  We  haven't  tasted  a  morsel  the  whole  day,  and 
don't  know  what  we  are  going  to  do  for  the  night 
either,"  he  said. 

'*  There  isn't  much  to  be  got  out  of  you,  poor 
beggars  ! "  said  the  robber ;  *'  but  that  makes  no 
difference.  Since  you  have  got  into  the  forest  you'll 
have  to   die,  and  no  mistake,"   he  said. 

"  God  bless  you  for  your  pretty  speech  !  "  said  the 
executioner,  looking  as  miserable  as  he  possibly 
could.  "  How  lucky  we  were  to  fall  in  with  you, 
for  you  know  very  well  it's  no  pleasure  to  live  when 
your  stomach  groans  for  food,  and  when  you  cannot 
get  a  morsel  to  satisfy  it  with.  But  since  you  are 
such  a  mighty  lord,  you  might  give  us  a  good  feed 
first,  for,  after  all,  it's  hard  to  die  on  an  empty 
stomach." 

164 


^S^li^  ^ 


WHY  THE  EXECUTIONER  IS  CALLED  ASSESSOR 

This  greatly  amused  the  robber,  who  laughed  ;  and 
then  the  others  began  to  laugh,  so  that  their  laughter 
could  be  heard  all  over  the  forest. 

"  Have  you  never  had  a  good  feed,  poor 
wretches  ?  "  he  asked.  "  Well,  Fll  be  extravagant 
for  once  in  my  life.  So  come  along,  and  you  shall 
have  as  much  as  you  can  put  into  your  carcases. 
But  to  tell  the  truth,  nobody  who  falls  in  with 
me,  need  trouble  much  about  food  for  the  rest  ot 
their  life,"  he  said  ;  and  so  he  laughed,  and  then 
the  other  robbers  laughed  till  the  forest  trembled. 

They  then  set  out  for  the  robbers'  cave,  and  there 
they  lifted  up  the  trap-door,  and  slid  down  under  the 
ground  one  after  the  other,  and  the  two  tramps  as 
well. 

There  was  a  large  room  down  there,  and  a  long 
table  in  the  middle,  which  stood  ready  laid.  The 
woman  with  the  sooty  face  carried  in  the  food 
on  silver  dishes  to  the  robbers,  who  sat  side  by  side 
on  the  bench  along  the  wall.  They  feasted  and 
drank  burnt  brandy  out  of  large  chalices,  and 
talked  and  bragged  about  all  their  valiant  deeds, 
while    they    were   having    their  fill. 

When  the  robbers  had  had  enough  both  of  food 
and  drink,  the  tramps  were  allowed  to  sit  down  to 
the  table,  but  on  the  opposite  side  to  the 
robbers. 

The  woman  put  both  beef  and  pork  before  them, 
and  each   of  them   got  his  cup  filled  with   brandy. 

167 


SWEDISH   FAIRY   TALES 

But  no  sooner  had  she  placed  the  food  on  the  table 
than  matters  took  quite  a  different  turn.  They 
planted  their  feet  firmly  on  the  ground,  and  pushed 
the  table  with  such  force  against  the  robbers,  that 
they  were  fixed  against  the  wall  as  if  they  were 
nailed  to  it.  Then  they  threw  the  brandy  into  the 
robbers'  eyes,  and  the  king  drew  forth  his  sword  and 
the  executioner  his  axe,  and  before  the  robbers  could 
rub  the  brandy  out  of  their  eyes  they  were   all  killed. 

This  was  a  big  capture,  and  no  mistake  ;  and  the 
king  was  greatly  pleased  with  it.  All  that  was 
found  in  the  robbers'  cave  he  wanted  to  give  to  the 
executioner ;  but  *'  no  thank  you,"  he  answered, 
"  there  was  something  else  he  would  like  to  have." 

"  Well,  what  might  that  be  ?  "  asked  the  king. 

"  Well,  your  majesty,"  he  said,  "  if  an  executioner 
becomes  ever  so  rich  he's  always  looked  upon  as  a 
butcher  ;  and  the  people  spit  after  him  just  as  if  he 
were  a  knacker  or  Old  Nick  himself,  and  he  is 
hardly  ever  allowed  to  mix  with  respectable  people, 
however  honest  he  may  be.  I  would  therefore  most 
humbly  ask  your  majesty  to  ordain  it  so  that  an 
executioner  shall  be  respected  like  other  people," 
he  said. 

"  Yes,  that  is  fair  and  reasonable,"  said  the  king  ; 
"  and  so  it  shall  be." 

The  king  accordingly  issued  an  edict  that  no  one 
must  dare  to  spit  after  the  executioner,  for  his 
calling  was  just   as  respectable  as  any  other  ;  and  in 

i68 


WHY  THE  EXECUTIONER  IS  CALLED  ASSESSOR 

order  that  no  one  should  be  ashamed  to  be  in  his 
company  he  was  to  have  the  title  of  Assessor,  and 
wear  a  three-cornered  hat  when  he  was  in  tiiU  dress. 
Such  was  the  edict,  and  so  it  is  to  this  day. 

But  as  the  executioner  would  not  accept  what  the 
robbers  had  hoarded,  the  king  gave  it  to  the  woman 
who  had  served  with  them  ;  and  when  she  had 
combed  the  hair  away  from  her  eyes  and  washed  the 
soot  off  her  face  she  turned  out  to  be  quite  a  hand- 
some woman.  The  executioner  then  thought  that 
as  the  king  had  been  so  generous  to  him  he  would 
not  be  behindhand  either,  and  so  he  made  her  the 
Lady  Assessor  ;  and  thus  after  all  he  became  possessor 
of  all  that  the  robbers  had  hoarded  up. 


169 


THE    PARSON    AND    THE    CLERK 


There  was  once 
upon  a  time  a  par- 
son who  was  such  a 
miser  that  he  even 
begrudged  the  beg- 
gars a  meal ;  and  as 
for  giving  a  poor 
fellow  a  shelter  for 
the  night,  he  would 
not  hear  of  it. 

But  he  was  a 
great  preacher  ; 
and  when  he  had 
once  begun  he 
would  shout  and 
thunder  and  strike  the  pulpit  with  his  fists  so  that 
every  corner  in  the  church  rang  with  his  words. 
And  his  parishioners  had  nothing  to  complain  about 
in  this  respect  ;  but  they  did  not  like  his  meanness, 
and  they  thought  it  was  a  shame  they  had  to  put  up 
with  such  a  parson. 

170 


THE   PARSON   AND   THE   CLERK 

The  parson's  wife  suffered  not  a  little  in  con- 
sequence; for  she  was  a  kind  and  good  woman,  but 
she   could  do   nothing  with   her  husband. 

Just  before  Christmas,  when  the  poor  were  most 
importunate,  the  parson  used  to  dress  himself  up  like 
a  tramp  and  sit  in  the  kitchen  in  the  evenings  ;  and 
when  some  poor  fellow  came  and  asked  for  shelter 
for  the  night,  the  parson's  wife  had  to  say  that  they 
already  had  one  to  find  room  for,  and  would  then 
tell  him  to  go  to  the  clerk,  who  was  their  nearest 
neighbour.  The  clerk,  as  you  may  guess,  would 
have  been  just  as  pleased  if  he  had  not  been  troubled 
with  these  guests  ;  for  he  thought — as  was  only  too 
true — that  it  was  more  the  parson's  duty  than  his  to 
feed  and  shelter  the  poor.  But  the  clerk  was  a  sly 
dog  and  full  of  fun  and  mischief,  as  parish  clerks 
generally  are. 

It  would  be  a  strange  thing,  he  thought,  if 
there  were  not  a  remedy  for  meanness  as  well  as  for 
other  ailments  ;  so  one  evening,  shortly  before 
Christmas,  he  dressed  himself  like  a  tramp,  and 
went  to  the  parsonage  and  asked  for  shelter  for 
the    night. 

Yes,  that  he  should  have  had  with  pleasure,  but 
they  already  had  a  stranger  in  the  house,  said  the 
parson's  wife,  pointing  to  the  other  tramp,  who  was 
sitting  by  the  hearth — for,  of  course,  she  never  said 
a  word  about  him  being  the  parson.  As  matters 
stood  she  thought  he  had  better  go  to   the  clerk,  for 

171 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

they  were  not  likely  to  have  any  strangers  over 
there. 

"  Haven't  they  ?  "  said  the  clerk.  "  Why,  they 
have  their  place  so  full  they  have  scarcely  any  room 
for  themselves  ;  for  I  have  just  come  from  there," 
he  said,  *'  and  I  don't  think  you  would  like  me  to 
sleep  in  the  fields  and  freeze  to  death,  would  you  .?  " 

Oh,  dear  no,  it  wasn't  likely  ;  she  could  not  be  so 
unchristian  ;  but  as  she  had  no  place  to  put  him  she 
could  not  very  well  do  anything  for  him,  she 
said. 

"I  think  you  can,"  said  the  clerk;  "if  you  can 
shelter  one  you  can  shelter  two,  and  I  don't  suppose 
that  this  mate  of  mine  is  going  to  sleep  in  the  parson's 
bed,  is  he  ?  "  he  asked,  and  slapped  the  parson  so 
hard  on  his  back  that  he  nearly  tumbled  on  the 
hearth. 

"We  must  be  content,  and  be  thankful  as  well, 
whichever  way  the  world  treats  us,"  said  the 
parson. 

"  What  you  say  is  quite  true,"  said  the  clerk  ; 
"  and  I'll  be  quite  content,  and  share  the  bed  with 
you,  if  the  lady  of  the  house  allows  it,  and  she  will 
then  shelter  two  men  to-night  instead  ot  one.  For 
there  is  no  help  for  it,  as  far  as  I  can  see,"  he 
said. 

The  parson's  wife  resisted  his  importunities  as  long 
as  she  could,  for  she  thought  the  tramp  would  not  be 
a  pleasant  bedfellow  for   her  husband  ;   but   the  clerk 

172 


THE    PARSON   AND   THE    CLERK 

would  by  no  means  listen  to  her,  so  she  had  to  give 
in   at  last. 

They  were  to  sleep  in  the  servant  lad's  room  in 
the  brew-house,  as  he  was  away  at  the  mill — the 
parson  in  the  settle-bed,  and  the  clerk  on  the 
bench. 

That  was  her  order ;  but  the  clerk  was  not 
satisfied  with  the  arrangement,  and  when  he  came 
into  the  room  he  threw  himself  into  the  settle- 
bed,  and  the  parson  had  to  content  himself  with 
the  bench. 

Before  long  the  clerk  stole  out  of  the  room, 
and  when  he  came  back  he  woke  the  parson  and 
said  : 

*'  I  have  served  out  that  miserly  parson,  I  can 
tell  you !  I  have  made  a  hole  in  the  loft  of  his 
wood-shed,  so  that  all  the  corn  he  had  stored  in 
the  room  above  is  running  down  among  his  stacks 
of  wood." 

*'  Oh  dear  !   oh  dear  !  "  wailed  the  parson. 

"  What's  the  matter  with  you  ?  "  said  the 
clerk. 

"  I  feel  so  bad,  so  bad  !  "  said  the  parson,  and  off 
he  ran  to  the  wood-shed. 

*'  I  think  I  have  given  him  something  to  do 
now,  and  why  should  I  lie  on  this  wretched 
straw  .?  I  shall  find  better  quarters  in  the  house," 
thought  the  clerk  ;  and  so  he  went  into  the  house 
and  sat    down    in    the    parlour    by    the    fire.     The 

173 


SWEDISH    FAIRY    TALES 

door  was  open  to  the  parson's  bedroom,  and  in 
order  that  the  wife  should  think  it  was  her 
husband  who  had  come  in  he  imitated  the  parson's 
voice. 

"  I  have  been  lying  so  uncomfortably,"  he  said 
in  a  pitiful  voice,  '*  for  that  scamp  of  a  tramp 
made  me  lie  on  the  bench,  so  I  thought  I  would 
come  here  and   rest   for  a  little   while." 

"  Of  course,  of  course,  my  dear,"  said  the  wife. 
**  But  why  should  you  be  so  hard-hearted  with 
people  ?  It  is  a  sin  and  a  shame,  that  it  is, — and 
it  brings  you  no  happiness   either." 

*'  Ah  well,  that  may  be,"  said  the  clerk,  all  the 
time  imitating  the  parson.  "  I  have  been  suffering 
so  much  to-night  that  I  shall  be  better  after 
this." 

"  God  bless  you  for  those  words ! "  said  the 
parson's  wife. 

In  a  little  while  the  clerk  said  :  "  I  must  go 
now  to  that  tramp,  so  that  he  does  not  find  out 
where  I   am." 

And  off  he  went,  and  only  just  managed  to  lie 
down   in   time  before  the  parson    returned. 

The  parson  had  in  the  meantime  been  hard  at 
work  in  the  wood-shed  trying  to  stop  the  hole  in 
the  loft,  and  had  fallen  head  over  heels  many  times 
among  the  logs  and  firewood,  before  he  succeeded 
in  doing  so  ;  but  by  that  time  nearly  all  the  corn 
had   found  its  way  down   into  the   wood-shed. 

174 


THE    PARSON    AND   THE   CLERK 

He  came  back  to  the  servant-lad's  room  puffing 
and  groaning  like  a  smith's  bellows,  and  lay  down 
on  the  bench.  As  soon  as  the  clerk  saw  that  he  had 
settled  down  and  got  the  blanket  over  his  head,  he 
stole  out  of  the  room  again. 

When  he  came  back  he  woke  the  parson  and 
said  : 

"  I  have  now  served  the  parson  a  still  better 
trick.  When  I  came  outside  and  heard  the  wolves 
howling  over  the  hills,  I  went  into  the  cow-house 
and   let   out   all   the   cattle." 

"Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !"  shouted  the  parson,  and 
started   as   if  he   had   been   shot. 

"  What's   the  matter  with  you  ?  "  said  the  clerk. 

"  I  feel  so  bad,  so  bad  !  "  said  the  parson  ;  and  the 
next  moment  he  was  gone. 

"  I  think  you'll  have  enough  to  do  for  a  long 
while  now,"  said  the  clerk  ;  and  so  he  went  back  to 
the  parlour. 

"  Are  you  there  again  ?  "  asked  the  parson's  wife 
from  the  bedroom. 

"  Yes,  my  dear,"  said  the  clerk,  imitating  the 
parson's  voice.  ''  I  sent  that  tramp  on  a  fool's 
errand  ;  and  I  have  been  suffering  so  much  on  the 
bench  that  I  thought  I  would  come  here  and  rest 
again   for  a  while." 

"  Yes,  my  dear,  that  you  must,"  said  the  wife  ; 
and  the  clerk  settled  down  in  the  chair  by  the  fire. 

In    a   while  the  clerk  said  :    '*  I  must  go  back  to 

175 


SWEDISH   FAIRY    TALES 

that  tramp  again,  so  that  he  does  not  find  out  where 
I  am  ;  "  and  then  he  went  back  to  his  bed. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  parson  had  been  running 
about  the  fields  and  the  hills,  and  had  fallen  several 
times  on  his  face,  while  he  rushed  about  calling  and 
driving  in  the  cattle.  He  had  a  terrible  struggle  to 
get  all  the  beasts  back  to  the  cow-house,  for  he  had 
a  large  herd  of  cattle. 

The  clerk  had  not  been  long  in  bed  when  the 
parson  came  rushing  into  the  room,  puffing  and 
groaning,  so  that  one  could  not  help  pitying  him  ; 
for  he  seemed   to   have  lost  his  breath  altogether. 

"  You  were  long  away  this  time,"  said  the  clerk. 
"*'  But  in  the  meantime  I  have  served  out  that  miserly 
parson   once  more." 

"  What's  that  you  say  ? "  said  the  parson,  who 
began  to  feel  so  ill  at  ease  that  he  could  scarcely 
keep  on  his  legs. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  clerk  ;  but  this  time  he  did  not 
speak  the  truth.  '*  I  have  been  down  in  the  cellar  ; 
and  I  have  poured  two  buckets  of  ditch  water  in  the 
beer  barrel  in  the  far  off  corner,  for  I  thought  the 
parson  ought  to  have  something  to  give  his  clerk  at 
Christmas." 

"  Oh  dear  !  oh  dear  !  "  shouted  the  parson. 

"  What's  the  matter  with  you  ?  "  asked  the  clerk. 

"  I  feel  so  bad,  so  bad  !  "  said  the  parson. 

"  Yes,  I  can  imagine  that,"  said  the  clerk  ;  *'  and  I 
pity  you  so  much  that   now  you  may  lie  in  my  bed. 

176 


THE    PARSON   AND   THE   CLERK 

It'll  soon  be  morning,  and  I  must  be  getting  away. 
I  don't  expect  I  shall  get  any  breakfast  from  this 
miserable  parson,  do  you  ?  Well,  good-bye,  then," 
he  said  ;   and  off  he  went. 

"  Phew  !  "  sighed  the  parson.  He  felt  as  if  the 
whole  parish  had  been  lifted  off  his  back  ;  and  no 
sooner  was  the  clerk  gone  than  he  dragged  himself 
in   to  his  wife. 

"  Are  you  there  again,  husband  ?  "  she  said. 

'*  A-gain  ?  "  said  the  parson  ;  it  was  with  the 
greatest  difficulty  he  was  able  to  speak,  so  exhausted 
was  he. 

*'  Yes  ;  you  have  been  here  twice  before  during  the 
night,"  said  his  wife. 

"  Tw-ice  ?  "  groaned  the  parson. 

"  Yes,  of  course,"  said  his  wife. 

'*  You  have  been  dreaming  !  "  said  the  parson. 

"  Oh  dear,  no  ;  I  don't  dream  when  I  don't 
sleep,"  said  his  wife.  "  But,  my  dear  good  husband, 
don't  play  such  pranks  another  time  !  " 

"  No-o  !  "  said  the  parson.  "  Better  to  give  to 
the  poor  than  to  go  through  such  misery  as  I  have 
done  to-night,"  he  said,  forcing  the  words  out  ;  and 
then  he  fell  asleep. 

All  at  once  he  started  up  and  shouted  to  his  wife  : 
"  My  dear  !  " 

"  Well,  my  dear  ?  "  said  his  wife. 

"  The  beer  barrel  in  the  furthest  corner  you  must 
send  to  the  clerk,"  he  said. 

177  N 


SWEDISH    FAIRY   TALES 

"  Bless  my  soul,  but  that's  too  much,"  said  his 
wife. 

"  It's  just — about  right,"  moaned  the  parson  ;  and 
then  he  fell  asleep  again. 

Next  morning  the  wife  had  the  barrel  of  beer  sent 
across  to  the  clerk's  house.  He  was  much  pleased 
to  receive  it,  and  sent  back  his  thanks  for  it  ;  for  he 
knew  the  beer  had  not  been  tampered  with.  But  the 
parson  had  the  greatest  trouble  to  sort  out  the  corn 
from  the  splinters  and  rubbish  in  the  wood-shed. 
But  they  kept  on  cleaning  and  shaking  and  sorting 
so  long  that  at  last  they  saved  all  the  corn,  with  the 
exception   of  a  few  barrels. 

But  the  parson  never  forgot  that  terrible  night. 
He  was  cured  of  his  meanness,  and  became  quite  a 
different  person.  He  never  refused  any  poor  people 
either  food  or  lodgings  ;  and  when  the  farmers  came 
to  pay  their  tithes  in  the  autumn  he  gave  them  such 
a  grand  feast  that  his  parishioners  said  they  could 
never  have  wished  for  a  better  parson. 

It  was  indeed  worth  a  barrel  of  beer  to  have  such 
a  parish  clerk  ! 


UNIVERSITT 

RICHARD   CLAY   ANU   SONS,    LIMITED,    LONDON    AND    BUNGAY. 


Txvo  Vols.,  Dcniy  dtto,  \os.  net.  each,  or  in  One   Vol.  £i   net. 

HANS    ANDERSEN'S 

FAIRY    TALES 

A  NEW  TRANSLATION  FROM  THE  DANISH  ORIGINAL 

H.   L.    BRiEKSTAD 

WITH     AN     INTRODUCTION      BY     EDMUND    GOSSE 

AM) 

.     .     240   WOOD    ENGRAVINGS     .     . 

BY 

HANS    TEGNER 


WILLIAM  HEINEMANN,    LONDON 


OPIXI0IVS    0P    THE    PRESS. 

BLACK  AND  WHITE. — "  This  beautiful  edition  has  an  especial  attraction  for 
lovers  of  art.  The  wonderful  drawings  have  been  rendered  with  such  exquisite  grace 
and  fidelity,  that  the  eye  is  delighted  with  each  separate  page.  The  pictures  are 
pictures  for  old  and  young,  quite  as  much  as  the  letterpress." 

GLOBE. — "  The  honour  of  producing  in  England  the  most  sumptuous  and  admirable 
edition  of  the  '  Eairy  Tales  '  of  Andersen  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of  Mr.  \V.  Heinemann. 
It  is  not  only  to  the  young  people  that  this  incomparable  edition  appeals.  Their 
elders  will  delight  not  only  in  Mr.  Brjekstad's  flowing  prose,  but  in  Hans  Tegner's 
masterly  drawings." 

PUBLISHERS'  CIRCULAR.— ''li  may  safely  be  said  that  this  edition  of  Andersen 
dedicated  to  the  Princess  of  Wales  is  the  most  magnificent  that  has  ever  been  issued 
in  England.  The  illustrations  are  fascinating  in  their  originality,  their  power,  their 
humour,  pathos  and  picturesqueness.  Mr.  Brcekstad  has  produced  a  version  that  will 
probably  supersede  the  other  English  translations.  It  seems  to  render  the  very  spirit 
of  the  Tales." 


OPINIONS    OF    THE    PRESS— conimuecf.- 

TRUTH. — "  The  illustrations  by  Hans  Tegner,  perhaps  the  greatest  of  living  Danish 
artists,  have  been  cut  on  wood  by  well-known  wood  engravers,  so  that  the  artistic 
appeal  to  lovers  of  a  fine  book  is  well-nigh  irresistible." 

THE  ATHEN^TLUM. — "  Mr.  Heinemann's  edition  of  Hans  Christian  Andersen's 
Fairy  Tales  will,  we  imagine,  be  the  most  liked  of  this  year's  crop  of  Christmas  books. 
The  stories  themselves  are,  of  course,  familiar,  but  it  is  new  to  find  them  so  well  and 
accurately  translated  as  they  are  by  Mr.  Brrekstad." 

ACADEMY. — "  At  last  Andersen  has  found  an  illustrator  deserving  more  than 
ephemeral  connexion  with  his  genius.  Mr,  Brsekstad's  translation  has  great  merit. 
We  have  compared  it  with  three,  including  the  standard  one  by  Mrs.  Paull,  and 
applaud  its  superiority  in  vigour  and  eloquence." 

REVIEW  OF  REVIEWS.— ''Y ox  the  first  time  Hans  Andersen  is  properly 
illustrated,  by  one  of  his  own  countrymen,  the  greatest  living  Danish  artist,  and  one 
who  has  succeeded  in  interpreting  the  true  spirit  and  genius  of  the  author.  No  better 
man  than  Mr.  Brsekstad  could  have  been  entrusted  with  the  English  translation." 

DAILY  CHRONICLE.— ''C&xi3.m\y  the  first  place  among  the  Christmas  books 
must  be  given  to  the  two  splendid  volumes  of  Andersen's  Fairy  Tales  with  illustrations 
by  Hans  Tegner." 

THE  SPHERE. — "The  most  beautiful  children's  book  of  the  season,  beyond  all 
comparison,  is  the  edition  of  Hans  Andersen's  Fairy  Tales  that  we  owe  to 
Mr.  Brsekstad's  industry  and  to  Mr.  Heinemann's  enterprise.  The  stories  are 
admirably  translated  and  the  illustrations  are  superb  wood  engravings." 

LADY'S  PICTORIAL. — "  It  is  impossible  to  say  too  much  for  this  new  edition  ot 
Hans  Andersen,  with  which  Mr.  Heinemann  has  opened  the  gift-book  season.  The 
quaint  Danish  writer  of  the  most  popular  collection  of  Fairy  Stories  known  to  the 
reading  world  will  win  many  new  admirers  through  the  medium  of  this  well- translated 
and  delightfully  illustrated  edition  of  his  immortal  work." 

THE  OBSERVER. — "The  season  is  scarcely  likely  to  give  us  anything  more 
sumptuous  and  attractive  than  these  two  volumes,  containing  Mr.  Brskstad's  new 
translation  of  Hans  Andersen's  immortal  stories.  The  version  is  an  admirable  one, 
the  numerous  illustrations  are  in  perfect  keeping  with  the  text,  and  the  volumes  are 
produced  in  the  best  of  taste." 


VNIVERSITT 


OK 


14  r)A      '^F 


14  DAY  USE 

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